Dashing and Soaring
by sassymouse
Summary: <html><head></head>*NEW COVER!* Rainbow Dash signs up for a four month boot camp at the Wonderbolts Academy and is overjoyed when Wonderbolt, Soarin, decides to be her trainer. Follow the daily lives of Rainbow Dash, Soarin, Braeburn and Spitfire as they go through each day at the Academy.</html>
1. Arriving

**Authors note: This story takes place after season 4 and most likely 5.**

**When I watched the season 3 episode, Wonderbolts Academy, I couldn't help thinking 'Where the heck is Soarin?' he's a Wonderbolt and this was the Wonderbolts Academy, so why isn't he there. So, recently, I finally became inspired to write a story about Soarin's role in the Wonderbolts Academy.**

**This is kinda like a sequel to Wonderbolts Academy, only it takes place after season 4. Rainbow Dash signs up for a four month boot camp at the academy and Soarin decides to be her mentor. So, there most likely will be some SoarinDash because I love that pairing.**

**Of course, Spitfire's in the story, too. How could I not put her in the story, she's my favourite pony…oh, and she works there.**

**I also wanted to add Braeburn into the story since he's my favourite boy pony, so I decided to make him Soarin's friend from High School. I know what you're thinking: This story must take place in Cloudsdale, so how is an earth pony walking on clouds? Well, if you paid attention to the episode Sonic Rainboom, you would know that there is a spell that allows non-pegasus ponies to walk on clouds. Only instead of the shorter spell that is shown in the series, this spell lasts longer. Simple. I think that covers everything. **

**Holy cow, this has got to be one of the longest author's notes ever. Anyway, without further ado, the story:**

…**..**

"_Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!"_

Rainbow Dash repeated over and over again in her head. She was so excited she felt like she could do a dozen Sonic Rainboom's in a row. She'd been waiting for this for a whole month and now she was finally going.

Why was Rainbow Dash so excited, you ask?

One month before, Rainbow Dash had signed up for a four month long Wonderbolts Academy boot camp. It took forever for her to get her reply in the mail and she was so overjoyed when she read that she had been accepted.

Then again, as if she wasn't gonna be accepted. After an agonising long wait and a series of rib-crushing hugs from Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash was finally on her way to Cloudsdale.

Pinkie Pie had refused to let Rainbow Dash leave unless she promised to write a whole bunch of letters to her and the others. Rainbow Dash had pinkie-promised that she would write a letter every day and that finally got Pinkie Pie to let her leave.

Rainbow thought back to the last time she was at the academy. She knew that Lightning Dust would never be allowed back for a boot camp, not after the way she had acted. She'd enjoyed every single moment of the academy after Lightning Dust had been kicked out. She couldn't wait to experience the thrill of training for the Wonderbolts again. Heck, they should just make her a Wonderbolt right now.

There it was: Cloudsdale, her old home. Even now, Rainbow was mesmerized by the rainbows tumbling from the cloudy city. Everywhere she looked, pegasi were flying around on their daily business. As Rainbow Dash touched down she sighed softly at the feel of the fluffy clouds beneath her hooves. The academy wasn't that far away, so Rainbow Dash decided to walk for a change and keep all of her energy bottled up so she could wow the others. There was no doubt her mind that she could wow them without all her energy, anyway, but she wanted to fly even faster and awesomer than ever before, if that was even possible.

Before Rainbow Dash knew it she was inside the academy. The actual academy was a huge building made of clouds, but for the whole of her previous time in the academy, she had only done outside activities with the other cadets.

She was meant to report to the main hall, most likely to get lectured on this and that. As she made her way through the hallways, she met two other pegasi that looked a little lost. One was a light purple mare with a blue and orange striped mane and tail, the other a tall stallion with peach coloured fur and an orange and red mane and tail that reminded Rainbow Dash of candy canes. The purple mare noticed her.

"Are you looking for the main hall, too?" She asked. Rainbow Dash didn't want to admit that she was lost, but at least she wouldn't be the odd one out with these two.

"Yeah…would it kill them to put up some signs telling us where it is?" Rainbow Dash replied. The purple mare giggled and held out her hoof.

"Name's Lullaby," She greeted as Rainbow Dash shook her hoof eagerly. Rainbow noticed that the mares cutie mark was a nightcap surrounded by musical notes. The peach furred stallion shook Rainbow Dash's hoof, too, after Lullaby had let go of it.

"I'm Sugar Swoop," He told Rainbow, who saw that his cutie mark was, ironically, a candy cane.

"And I'm Rainbow Dash," The cyan pegasus puffed out her chest. She was expecting these two pegasi to at least ask her for an autograph but all they said was that it was nice to meet her. Oh well, after she wowed the Wonderbolt's during the boot camp, the whole of Equestria would know her name. Somepony suddenly cleared their throat at the end of the hall. Rainbow Dash turned to see a familiar face. It was none other than High Winds, the Wonderbolt.

"Are you guys looking for the main hall?" High Winds asked. Rainbow Dash had expected the Wonderbolt to chew them out for being late, but instead her red eyes were gentle and kind. "It's this way," She pointed a hoof towards the hallway on the right. Rainbow Dash felt a little embarrassed that she needed help to get somewhere but thanked High Winds anyway. There was no way she wasn't going to thank one of her life long heroes.

The main hall was HUGE! It probably took up most of the academy. There was no need at all for the hall to be so massive since there were hardly any pegasi there. The Wonderbolts were lined up against one of the end walls, all of them out of their regular uniforms and instead in their academy uniform. Rainbow Dash noticed the Elite Three Wonderbolts: Spitfire, Soarin and Fleetfoot wave at her and she eagerly waved back.

Her favourite Wonderbolt was Spitfire closely followed by Soarin. Fleetfoot was her third favourite, but Rainbow Dash hadn't really had enough interaction with her to know her that well. Rainbow Dash looked around the hall. She wasn't looking for a Wonderbolt; she was looking for a friend of hers.

One week ago, Rainbow Dash was helping Applejack with some apple-bucking since she'd lost a bet. They had tried to see who could eat the most pies in ten minutes and Applejack had beaten her by one pie. Just one! So, because she lost she had to help harvest the apples. If Dash had won, Applejack would have had to help time how fast she could fly around Ponyville. So, they had been working for about twenty minutes when Big Macintosh showed up with Applejack's cousin Braeburn from Appaloosa.

Braeburn told them that he was completely broke after he'd messed up his career selling apples. Rainbow Dash had asked him how he could possibly mess up selling apples, since Applejack and her family did it so easily without any mishaps at all. Braeburn explained that apparently his apples had been invaded by caterpillars. So, after a few ponies ended up in the ER because of his apples, the sheriff had insisted that he end his apple selling business.

Rainbow Dash couldn't believe what he said next. Apparently, Braeburn had been offered work in Cloudsdale in the Wonderbolts Academy thanks to a pegasus friend of his. Rainbow Dash almost had a happy heart attack when he told them that his friend was none other than SOARIN!

According to Braeburn, he and Soarin had gone to high school together and were best friends and Soarin was offering Braeburn a job at the boot camp so he could earn enough money to get back on his hooves.

So, Braeburn had come to Ponyville because he knew that Twilight could cast a spell that allowed earth ponies to walk on clouds. So, before they knew it, they were at Twilight's castle explaining the situation to their purple alicorn friend. Twilight had graciously accepted to cast the spell on Braeburn.

It was a little harder for her to do but she managed to cast a spell that would allow him to walk on clouds for the length of boot camp and he'd left for Cloudsdale immediately.

But Rainbow Dash couldn't see him in the hall. There were only pegasi. Rainbow Dash decided that she would find him later because Sugar Swoop began prodding her shoulder.

"Are you okay? You seemed miles away," He asked, a little concerned. Rainbow Dahs shrugged her shoulders.

"Yeah, I was just looking for somepony," She replied honestly. Thankfully, Sugar Swoop didn't ask her anymore questions. Lullaby suddenly gasped with excitement and bounced up and down.

"It looks like the Wonderbolts are about to say something. This is so exciting I could barf stars, rainbows and candy!" The purple pegasus reminded Rainbow Dash of Pinkie Pie. Rainbow and her two new friends joined the crowd of pegasi who were standing by, waiting for the Wonderbolts to address them. One of them, Wave Chill, raised a hoof for silence. In a flash, the hall began quiet, with the exception of the fading echoes of the conversations that the group of excited pegasi had been having mere moments ago. Fleetfoot stepped forward and began talking in that lisp of hers.

"Welcome to the Wonderbolt'th Academy," She greeted. Rainbow Dash tried not to laugh at her lisp. It was just so darn hilarious, although she did hear a couple of the other pegasi chortling, although Fleetfoot ignored them. She must have been used to it by now.

"During the four month'th that you will be here, you will be expected to act like real Wonderbolt'th. You will wake up at the thame time, you will do the thame drills, you will eat, thleep and breathe Wonderbolt'th," She explained. Rainbow Dash smirked.

She already did.

Soarin took up the lecture.

"Today and tomorrow, there will be no drills. Today, you will prepare your dorms. The sleeping arrangements are on the board over there. Soaring pointed a hoof at the far side off the hall, where a long list of names and a map of the dorms had been posted on the wall. "Tomorrow, you will be fitted for your cadet uniforms. After that, you will train like real Wonderbolts every day."

Rainbow Dash looked calm on the outside, but on the inside she was doing a happy dance. Real Wonderbolts training!

AWESOME!

Spitfire ended the lecture.

"Now, we'll leave you to get ready. Go to your dorms and unpack. In exactly one hour, you will go to the mess hall for dinner. Good luck," The yellow Wonderbolt dismissed them all with a flick of her hoof. Rainbow Dash was about to go over to the dorm map when she felt a hoof on her shoulder. She turned and saw Soarin standing behind her, smiling brightly at her.

"Hey there, Rainbow Dash, I'm not surprised that you're here," He complimented her. Rainbow Dash blushed a little.

"It's great to see you, Soarin," She greeted. Soarin was wearing his blue officer uniform and black tie and his flying goggles were balanced on his head, making Rainbow Dash wonder if he ever took them off. "Is there something you wanted?" She asked, curious as to why the Wonderbolt co-captain had come over to see her. Soarin shook his head.

"I just wanted to say hi," He admitted, shrugging his shoulders. "I'd bet all the pies in the world that you're the best cadet here," He stated. Rainbow Dash almost did a double-take. Soarin was very passionate about pies, and he would bet all of them on her being the best!?

Heck, so would she.

"Thanks," Rainbow Dash beamed with pride. Soarin nodded over to the dorm map.

"You should go and find your dorm, but I'll see you in the mess hall!" Soarin told her as he began trotting back to the other Wonderbolts.

"Yeah, see ya!" Rainbow Dash went over to the map and tried to find her name. Maybe she would room with Lullaby? No, Lullaby was rooming with somepony named Paradise. She finally found her name. She was sharing a room with a mare called Spring Song in room 7.

Rainbow Dash suddenly heard Soarin and he sounded hysterical. When she looked over at him, he was smiling, though.

"Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease-" He was repeating to Spitfire, who looked like she was going to blow her top. She stomped a hoof down in frustration.

"If I say yes, will you shut your pie-hole?" She snapped, smiling slightly. Soarin jumped for joy.

"Thanks, Spitfire! This is awesome!" Soarin looked over at Rainbow Dash for a split second before looking away. Rainbow Dash wondered what they were arguing about. She just shrugged it off, it was probably something stupid. She made her way through the maze of hallways until she found room 7, which was identical to all of the other doors, except for the fact that it of course had the number seven on it.

She wondered what this Spring Song was like. Rainbow Dash opened the door to see that there was nopony there. Oh well, Spring Song must still be on her way. Rainbow Dash made her way over to one of the two beds and set down her saddle bags. She stacked her Daring-Do books on the side table and put her secret stash of candy under the bed. She put some paper and a quill on her bedside table, too, so she wouldn't forget to write to her friends back in Ponyville. Now that she thought about it, she should write to them, now. She picked up the quill in her mouth and spread a piece of paper out on the bedside table and began writing.

_Hi, everypony,_

_I'm writing this from my dorm at the academy, Room 7. It's an okay room, though it's pretty small. I haven't met my roommate, Spring Song yet, but I'll tell you all about her when I do meet her._

_I've already made two new friends here, Lullaby and Sugar Swoop and they seem pretty nice. Maybe Spring Song could be friends with us, too._

_I'll send you another letter tomorrow, Pinkie Promise._

_Yours awesomely, _

_Rainbow Dash._

Rainbow Dash rolled up the scroll and tucked it into her saddlebags, deciding that she would post it when she went to the mess hall. Then, the door swung open and a pink pegasus mare with a blond tail and mane and bright green eyes strutted in. She was followed by another mare, who was green with a blue mane and tail and a tall stallion who was yellow with a brown Mohawk.

"Um…hi," Rainbow Dash greeted them, unsure as to why there were three pegasi there instead of just one mare. The blond pegasus looked her up and down before smiling at her.

"You must be Rainbow Dash?" She asked, to which Rainbow Dash nodded. The pink pegasus shook Rainbow's hoof eagerly. "I'm your roommate, Spring Song," She greeted.

"And…who are you two?" Rainbow Dash looked at the two pegasi she had entered with. Spring Song placed a hoof on the shoulder of the green mare.

"This is Paradise, my BFF," Spring Song introduced the mare, who smiled brightly. Rainbow Dash remembered reading the name Paradise on the dorm map in the same room as Lullaby.

"Hi!" Paradise chirped. Then Spring Song moved over to the stallion.

"And this is Ray," She patted the stallion on the back.

"'Sup?" He asked casually. At least these three seemed friendly.

"Wanna come to the mess hall with us?" Spring Song offered. Rainbow Dash shrugged.

"Sure, why not?" She looked up at the clock on the wall and was surprised to find that it was almost time for dinner. How had time gone so quickly? She must have gotten more lost than she'd first thought, trying to find her dorm.

"I'll just unpack my stuff when we get back," Spring Song tossed her yellow saddle bags on her bed and turned to walk out the door, giving Rainbow Dash a clear view of her cutie mark, a flaming sunflower. She looked at the other two pegasus ponies' cutie marks, too. Paradise's was a sun setting behind a hill and Ray's was winged meteor.

Rainbow Dash followed them out the door. She was surprised to have made so many friends in the short amount of time she'd been at the academy. Then again, who wouldn't want to be her friend?

They made their way to the mess hall, which was already packed with pegasi. They had to go to the back of the line to get their food since they were the last ponies there, but that gave them a lot of time to get to know eachother. Rainbow Dash learned that Spring Song was from Las Pegasus, Ray was a descendant of Commander Easyglider and Paradise liked baking. Rainbow was a little surprised to find that whatever Spring Song chose to eat, Paradise and Ray chose to eat, too. Rainbow decided to just get her own choice of food since had no interest in becoming a copycat.

As she scooped up some beans she heard a familiar voice from behind the counter.

"Hey, there Rainbow Dash, ah've been lookin' for ya!"

Rainbow looked up at the voice to see the speaker.

"Braeburn, I've been looking for you, too," The cyan pegasus gleefully greeted her earth pony friend. "So, you're working as a cook, here?" Rainbow was surprised as it was usually mares who worked as cooks.

"Yeah, Soarin knew how well I baked, so he gave me the job faster than you could say 'apple seed," Braeburn explained. Rainbow Dash warily eyed the apple fritter she had picked up.

"These things haven't got caterpillars in, right?" She asked. Braeburn chuckled.

"Nah, I made sure of it," He assured her, not realising that she was joking. "Ah'll catch up with ya later, Rainbow Dash. Ah have ta make some more apple pie."

Okay, catch ya later, Brae!" Rainbow Dash went to the table where Spring Song, Paradise and Ray were. Spring Song turned to Ray.

"Ray, would you mind sitting somewhere else?" She asked. Ray tilted his head.

"Why?" He asked. Rainbow Dash was confused, too. Weren't friends supposed to be together?

"We need some girl-time with Rainbow Dash," Paradise told him. Rainbow didn't like the sound of that. Ray shrugged and went to join a group of stallions on one of the other tables. Rainbow Dash cautiously sat down beside Spring Song and began nibbling on her horseshoe fries.

"So, what do you think of the academy?" The pink pegasus asked Rainbow, who smiled widely.

"It's awesome. I can't wait to start drills!" She replied determinedly.

"Me neither, me and Paradise are amazing fliers," She bragged, placing a hoof on Paradise's shoulder. The sentence that Paradise said next almost made Rainbow Dash spit out her drink.

"So who do you think is the cutest Wonderbolt?"

"Um…what was that?" Rainbow Dash wondered if she'd heard right, hoping she'd misheard. She hated talking about these kinds of things.

"Isn't Fire Streak so hot?" Paradise drooled. Rainbow almost puked up her dinner. She didn't reply.

"None of the Wonderbolts seem my type," Spring Song told Rainbow. "The only ponies who know this are me and Paradise, but…" Spring Song whispered in Rainbow's ear. "…I like Ray."

Rainbow wanted to turn their volumes to mute.

"Can we talk about something else?" She asked, spooning some beans into her mouth. Spring Song shrugged.

"Sure."

"Hey, Rainbow Dash, over here!" The three pegasus mares turned to the speaker. It was Soarin. "Can you come over here a sec?" He was sitting at a table with the other Wonderbolts. Rainbow obediently got up and trotted over to the Wonderbolt co-captain.

"What's up, Soarin?" Rainbow asked.

"I've got some good news. I was talking to Spitfire earlier and she said that I could be your trainer!" He told her gleefully. Rainbow Dash almost fainted.

A Wonderbolt!

Training her!

This…was…AWESOME!

"Really?" Rainbow Dash flapped into the air in excitement.

"You bet. Starting the day after tomorrow, I'll be teaching you some Wonderbolt level tricks," He told her. So this must have been what Soarin and Spitfire were arguing about back in the main hall.

"This is so cool. I've gotta thank Spitfire," Rainbow Dash looked around the room, but the Wonderbolt captain was nowhere to be seen. "Where is Spitfire?" She asked.

"She always eats alone in her office," He replied. Rainbow looked confused.

"Why?"

Soarin shrugged. "She's not much of a 'social butterfly' I suppose," He replied. He then changed the subject. "Hey, Braeburn told me he knew you. Is that true?"

"Yeah, we met in Appaloosa a few years back," She answered.

"Apparently, you helped settle something between the Appaloosan's and a herd of buffalo?"

"That's right," Rainbow nodded, recalling the time where she and Pinkie Pie had tried to argue for the buffalo's side. She was so pleased when they finally settled their differences and became friends, though she would never get that song that Pinkie Pie sang out of her head.

"It's kinda odd that he works here," Soarin stated, beginning to eat a large slice of apple pie.

"Because he's an earth pony?" Rainbow Dash suggested since it was the obvious answer.

"Nah, because he knows absolutely nothing about the Wonderbolts," Soarin replied with a mouthful of pie. "The other day I quizzed him on who all the Wonderbolts were and the only one he could name was me," He chuckled.

"You would've thought he'd know this stuff since he's your friend," Rainbow Dash glanced over to the food counter where Braeburn was slicing up some apple cake.

"I know right!" Soarin agreed, throwing his hooves into the air and accidentally slapping Blaze.

"Watch it, Soarin," The orange maned Wonderbolt rubbed her sore cheek.

"Um…oops," Soarin laughed weakly and scooted away from Blaze. Soarin then glanced up at the clock and his eyes bulged.

"Whoa! Dinner's almost over. Better hurry up," He began eating his pie faster. It was then that Rainbow realised that she was still hungry, too.

"I'd better go finish my dinner, too," She nodded back at her table where Spring Song and Paradise were laughing about something.

"Okay, then. See you tomorrow," Soarin bidded the cyan pegasus farewell. As Rainbow Dash sat back down at the table beside Spring Song, the two mares immediately began bugging her with questions.

"What was that all about?"

"What did he say?"

"Are you in trouble?"

"It was nothing…" Rainbow trailed off. "If you count him training me as nothing!" She finished with what bordered on a squee. Spring Song and Paradise did an actual squee and began chattering away.

"Do you think we'll all have Wonderbolt mentors?" Paradise asked. Rainbow Dash decided not to say that she didn't think they would. If they were all going to have Wonderbolt's teaching them, Spitfire wouldn't have been arguing with Soarin over it. Rainbow felt like she was the luckiest pony in Equestria. When she had finished eating, she, Spring Song and Paradise walked back to the dorms. Spring Song finally unpacked her things and Rainbow Dash decided to celebrate her first day at the academy by eating some of her candy stash. Just when she was on her sixth piece of candy corn she remembered.

She hadn't posted the latter she had wanted to send to her friends.

But, she didn't care, because that old letter was useless, now. She reached into her saddlebags and took out the old scroll. She crumpled it up and tossed in in the trash. She grabbed another piece of paper and her quill and began writing another letter.

"_Hi, everypony!_

_I'm having an epic day here. You'll never guess what happened!_

_Soarin is going to train me!_

_That's right. While the other cadets are lounging around in their free time I'm going to be zooming through the sky with the Wonderbolts co-captain learning Wonderbolt level tricks!_

_In other news, I've met my roommate, Spring Song and her friends and they seem pretty nice. I just hope they don't get jealous._

_I can't wait to tell you more._

_Yours awesomely,_

_Rainbow Dash"_

"Watcha doin', Dash?" Spring Song asked, placing her alarm clock on her bedside table.

"Just writing a letter to my friends," She replied, rolling up her letter and tucking it into her saddlebags, deciding that she would post it in the morning. Spring Song's gaze flickered from Rainbow Dash to the rainbow maned mare's stack of books and she gasped.

"Are those Daring Do books?" She asked. Rainbow Dash nodded and Spring Song whizzed over to them in a flash. She began examining each of the covers until she finally picked one up. "This is the only one I haven't read," She told Rainbow, holding up her copy of 'Daring Do and the Forbidden City of Clouds'. That was one of Rainbow Dash's favourites. Spring Song looked at Dash with the biggest, saddest pair of eyes she had ever seen. "Would you mind?" She asked, sticking out her bottom lip. Rainbow shrugged.

"Sure, you can read it," She replied. She'd already read that one four times. Spring Song flung herself onto her bed and opened the book to the first page.

"Thanks, Dash. You're awesome," The pink pegasus complimented Rainbow Dash, who nodded.

"I know," She smiled. She decided that she would read a Daring Do book, too. There was nothing else to do, anyway. She decided that she would read her favourite one, which was 'Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone'. She still felt like an idiot for trying to break into the hospital to get the book.

Rainbow Dash sat on her bed and began to read, though it was hard to focus with everything going on.

She couldn't believe that Soarin was going to be her mentor. It seemed too good to be true. She decided that she'd bottle up all of her excitement for the next morning.

She'd known that the boot camp would be awesome but she'd never thought it would be THIS awesome.

She couldn't wait for tomorrow!


	2. Tricks and Treats

**Authors Note: This is only a short author's note since I know how long the last one was. Just wanted to let you guys know that this story has absolutely no relation to my other MLP story, Let The Rainbow Remind You. Anything that happens in this story will not affect LTRRY in any way whatsoever. Just imagine that this story takes place in a parallel universe or something. Now that that's covered, on with Dashing and Soaring chapter 2!**

…**..**

"Okay, Rainbow Dash, it's your turn."

Rainbow stood rigid while the mare in charge of finding the cadets the right sized uniform measured her. After about a minute of the mare stretching a measuring tape along her back and legs, she disappeared into a room that Rainbow Dash assumed had the uniforms in them. She returned with one that was the perfect size and Rainbow Dash wasted no time in putting it on.

"You look awesome," Spring Song complimented Rainbow Dash, beginning to show off her own uniform.

"Does this make me look fat?" She asked, smiling. Rainbow tilted her head.

"I don't actually think it's possible to look fat in these things," She replied, looking herself over.

"Hey there, Rainbow Dash!" Rainbow turned to see Lullaby and Sugar Swoop trotting over to her, each of them wearing their new uniforms.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" Rainbow greeted, hoof bumping each of them in turn.

"I love these uniforms," Lullaby chirped. "It's kinda like a second skin-"

"Don't say it!" Sugar Swoop's eyes bulged out of his head as he foresaw what she was going to say next. Rainbow Dash had a feeling she knew what was coming next, too. Lullaby puffed out her chest and spoke.

"It feels like I'm wearing no-"

"Okay, that's enough!" Sugar Swoop covered the purple pegasus pony's mouth with a hoof. Rainbow Dash chuckled at their behaviour. Lullaby was about to say a famous Spitfire quote that had been used for a Wonderbolt's poster. Sugar Swoop then noticed Spring Song.

"Hi, who're you?" He asked her.

"Name's Spring Song and I guess you're…" She stopped talking and looked at his cutie mark. "…Candy Cane?" She guessed, shrugging her shoulders.

"Sugar Swoop," The peach stallion corrected her.

"And I'm Lullaby," the purple mare hoof bumped Spring Song. Then, they were joined by Paradise and Ray.

"Hi, Spring Song," Paradise smiled brightly at her friend. She then looked over to Lullaby. "Hey, roomie," She added.

"Hi, Paradise," Lullaby smiled back. Rainbow Dash had forgotten that the two of them were roommates. "Hi, Ray," She looked up at the yellow stallion, who gave her a lopsided smile. Rainbow didn't bother asking how she'd met Ray before. Paradise gave a little bounce.

"Did you two hear?" She asked Sugar Swoop and Lullaby.

"Hear what?" They both asked at the same time. Paradise put a hoof on Rainbow Dash's shoulder.

"Dash here is being trained by a Wonderbolt," She informed them. Lullaby gasped and lunged forward to hug Rainbow.

"That's so cool, Rainbow. How did you get a Wonderbolt to train you?" She asked, tightening her grip on the cyan pegasus, almost cutting off her circulation.

"And which one is it?" Sugar Swoop added.

"Well, first off, I didn't ask Soarin to train me, he asked Spitfire if he could and she said yes," Rainbow replied honestly. She could hardly believe it herself. When she had woken up that morning she had wondered if it was all a dream. She'd even tried pinching herself to see if she would wake up. It didn't work…it just hurt.

"Soarin!" Lullaby squeed. "You're so lucky, Rainbow Dash!" She bounced up and down like a kangaroo on a sugar buzz.

"Yeah, Soarin must really believe in you, Dash," Sugar Swoop congratulated the cyan mare by slapping her on the back. Rainbow smiled proudly.

"Well, if I were him, I'd believe in me, too," She bragged.

"What was that?"

"AH!" All six of the cadets gasped and turned around to see none other than Soarin standing a few feet away, an amused grin on his face.

"Don't do that, dude!" Sugar Swoop clutched his chest. "You almost scared the cornflakes outta me!"

"Sorry about that," Soarin chuckled sheepishly. "My ears were just burning. Were you talking about me?" He asked. He'd totally caught them red hoofed.

"We were just talking about you training Dash," Ray informed the pale blue stallion. Rainbow was a little shocked. This was the longest sentence Ray had said since she'd met him. According to Spring Song, he was a stallion of few words and usually spoke in one word sentences. He kinda reminded Rainbow of Big Mac with extended vocabulary.

"Can you train me, too?" Lullaby asked hopefully, her eyes sparkling. Sugar Swoop stood by her side.

"Can you train all of us?" he asked, making puppy dog eyes, which was quite pathetic for a stallion. Soarin shook his head.

"I don't think I could handle six of you at once," He shifted his eyes from side to side, to see if anypony was around. "But maybe if you begged-I mean- asked Silver Lining politely, he could teach you," He told them. Without saying another word, Sugar Swoop zoomed off, with Lullaby, Spring Song, Ray and Paradise right behind him. Then, all was silent in the room, apart from the occasion stretching noise of the measuring tape as the last cadet was measured.

"Well, they're an odd group," Soarin commented, staring after them. "Just between you and me, I just wanna get back at Silver Lining for taking the last slice of pie this morning," He revealed, making Rainbow Dash laugh.

"Do you ever stop thinking about pie?" She asked him, poking his shoulder.

"Nope," He replied without hesitation, making Rainbow Dash laugh even more. He hesitated before talking again. "Hey, how about we go flying right now. You can show me some of your tricks and I'll show you some of mine," He asked her, making Rainbow Dash beam.

"Sure, that sounds great!" She replied enthusiastically, spreading her wings, despite the fact that they were still inside. The two pegasi headed outside to the training grounds, which were deserted since there were no drills today. Rainbow Dash found it odd to see it so silent. Usually whenever she had been out here before, Spitfire had been yelling in her ear. She was an awesome drill sergeant.

Soarin led Dash to the air obstacle course and looked around to make sure no one was watching. He turned to Rainbow Dash and snickered.

"Don't tell Spitfire," He whispered, activating the obstacle course. Rainbow's jaw dropped. This was amazing! She would totally wow Soarin with her stunts. The pale blue stallion spread his wings. "Okay let's-"

Before he could finish, Rainbow Dash whizzed past him, leaving her signature rainbow trail in her wake.

"-go," he finished. He quickly took off after the cyan mare, putting on a huge burst of speed to catch up with her. The two pegasi skilfully passed through all of the cloudy hoops, Rainbow Dash showing off by looping around them a couple of times. Dash knew that she could do as many loops as she wanted around the rings and still keep up with Soarin. They reached the next part of the obstacle course, where they had to dodge clouds. The rainbow maned pegasus zoomed on ahead at top speed. While Soarin was manoeuvring his was around, under and above the clouds, Rainbow Dash simply went around the sides the whole way, making Soarin's jaw drop. Dash laughed at his expression as she whooshed past. She didn't stop to wait for him. She wanted to beat a Wonderbolt in a race. She knew that he had never said anything about this being a race, but it was a race starting now.

Since there were no cadets blocking her way this time, Dash found the rest of the obstacle course as easy as pie. She ran into a little trouble when she had to fly through a storm, almost being blown away, but being the awesome pegasus she was, she quickly recovered and got back on track. She noticed that even Soarin struggled a little flying through the storm. Maybe all the Wonderbolts did, but never said.

Then came the easy part, simply flying over and under violent jets of mist, which Rainbow Dash decided to show off on. Instead of simply flying under and over repetitively, Dash decided to do a loop around them before moving onto the next one. Soarin was catching up, but Rainbow Dash didn't let that bother her. She carried on strongly, loving the feel of the wind whipping her face. She skidded to a halt on the landing strip mere moments before Soarin, who stared at her with fascination.

"That was awesome, Rainbow Dash!" he complimented her. Rainbow Dash proudly raised her chest.

"I know," She bragged. Soarin's features lit up as if he'd just got a brilliant idea, which he had.

"Hey, Dash?" He asked her.

"What?"

"Do you think you could do a Sonic Rainboom?" He asked her. Dash determinedly spread her wings.

"No prob!" She exclaimed, taking off immediately. She flew high into the air, higher and higher until Soarin was a tiny dot on the clouds below. She took a deep breath, preparing every bone in her body to perform her signature stunt. All of the Wonderbolts had their own special stunt that only they could perform, though Dash was sure that the Sonic Rainboom was much cooler than any of them. She began descending, picking up speed with every passing millisecond. She felt her face being pulled back by the g-force. She felt the pressure building up against her sides as it became harder and harder to go faster. Her wings and chest were beginning to burn, but she kept going. It had gotten a lot easier for her to perform Sonic Rainboom's since the Best Young Flier competition. She cheered as she finally broke the sound barrier and a spectacular rainbow coloured explosion occurred. She whizzed around the entire academy, leaving her rainbow trail behind her everywhere she went.

She landed a couple of minutes later beside Soarin after a series of flips, twists and other tricks. Soarin wore a hilarious expression on his face at the sight of the awesome stunt.

"Impressed?" Rainbow Dash asked, chuckling a little.

"You bet I am. I wish I could do that," Soarin replied, getting over the thrill of the Rainboom.

"Well, I do have a knack for impressing ponies," Dash bragged, examining a hoof casually. Rainbow suddenly blushed as her tummy growled loudly.

"Wow, somepony's hungry," Soarin teased her. Dash had skipped breakfast because she wanted to post her letter to her friends. She'd had to fly to the post office and back and by the time she'd returned to the Academy, she was too excited to eat anything. Now she was realising how hungry she really was.

"I guess so," She responded as her tummy growled again.

"Y'know, I might be able to persuade Braeburn to give us a free brunch," Soarin suggested. Rainbow Dash licked her lips. The Apple family's food was always delicious, especially if it was free.

"That sounds great. Race ya there!" Rainbow Dash took off with Soarin right behind her.

…**..**

"I won!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed as she burst through the double doors to the mess hall. Soarin was only a couple of seconds behind her.

"Well, of course you did, you had a head start," The pale blue stallion argued. The mess hall was empty with the exception of three of the Wonderbolts: Surprise, High Winds and Blaze. Soarin wondered what they were talking about. Those three were always coming up with ridiculous plans to make the Wonderbolts look more heroic and most of those plans ended with them getting hurt. Their most hair-brained scheme so far was when they tried to take down a rampaging dragon on their own and got trapped. Then they had the nerve to pretend that they were still heroes afterwards. Soarin chuckled to himself as he remembered that Spitfire had given them a week of cleaning the toilets for punishment, since they had headed out without her permission.

"What are you waiting for, I'm starving," Rainbow Dash snapped him from his thoughts. Soarin nodded an apology before leading her into the kitchen where the smell of various lunch choices wafted around them. Soarin found it hard to resist one of the huge apple pies cooling on the counter. He heard a clang from the back of the kitchen and turned to see Braeburn putting some fresh apple fritters into an oven.

"Hey, Brae!" Soarin called out, making the earth pony jump. He smiled when he saw his old high school friend.

"'Sup, Soar?" Braeburn greeted, closing the oven door.

"Just wondering if we could get some grub," Soarin replied, nodding his head at Rainbow Dash. Braeburn smiled wider at the sight of his rainbow maned friend.

"Hey there, Rainbow Dash, ah heard that Soarin was training you. You're one lucky mare." He told her.

"You bet I am. I'm the only cadet here being trained by a Wonderbolt. I must be more awesome than I thought," Dash bragged.

"You are pretty awesome," Soarin told her, before blushing slightly.

"Thanks, Soarin, is it that obvious?" She bragged a little more. Braeburn grabbed a few muffins and put them on a plate.

"Y'all can have these on the house," He told them. "Though, can ah just have that one?" Braeburn quickly grabbed one of them and began munching on it. Soarin grabbed one and took a large bite.

"MMMM! These are delicious, right Rainbow Dash?" He ate the rest in no time and grabbed another.

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash agreed with a mouthful of muffin. "Soarin definitely made the right choice, making you the new cook."

"Ah should hope so, though it's only 'til they can find a full time cook. By the end of the boot camp ah should have been paid enough to restart my apple sellin' business," He explained, licking the crumbs from around his mouth. Rainbow Dash finished her second muffin.

"Man, I wish I could bake like that," She complimented the earth pony stallion, eying a third muffin.

"You and Soarin, both," He chuckled, turning to the pegasus stallion. "Remember that one time when ah tried to teach ya how to bake apple pie and ya almost burnt down the kitchen," He teased Soarin, poking him in the chest.

"It's hard to forget when you keep reminding me," Soarin grumbled, spraying a few crumbs as he spoke. Rainbow Dash chuckled at the two stallions. Soarin couldn't help thinking that she had a nice laugh.

"Ya know, ya remind me of Soarin," Braeburn told Rainbow Dash. "You're an amazin' flier, ya wanna be a Wonderbolt and ya love my cookin'."

"I can bake pretty well, too, ya know," Soarin argued with his friend, who rolled his eyes.

"Well, ya should have improved since ya learned that ya don't put apple crumble in the dishwasher," Braeburn shoved him playfully. Rainbow Dash gave a snort of laughter at her trainer's stupidity and he flushed red with embarrassment. He'd like to say that he hadn't done that, but he couldn't because he _had_ done it. He decided to change the subject.

"Hey, Braeburn, remember when I asked you if you remember who all the Wonderbolts were last week?" he asked his buddy.

"Yeah," Braeburn replied, taking another muffin off the plate for himself.

"Well, do you remember all of them yet?" he asked. Braeburn shifted his eyes to the sides, trying to remember.

"Well, there's you, of course," He began before ducking his head and mumbling to himself, trying to remember the others.

"Besides me," Soarin told him.

"Um…Fleetfoot!" Braeburn suddenly remembered. Soarin clapped.

"You've finally remembered somepony," He congratulated Braeburn. Then again, he and Fleetfoot were the only ones that had interacted with Braeburn. Fleetfoot was really friendly to him, which Soarin was pleased about, since she was one of his closest friends. The other Wonderbolts hadn't so much as said 'hello' to him. Braeburn probably didn't even acknowledge most of their existences.

"And there's…um…what's her name? Supplies…Surmise…" Braeburn struggled to remember the name.

"SURPRISE!"

"GAH!" Soarin, Rainbow Dash and Braeburn fell backwards with shock as a white pegasus with a bushy yellow mane popped up in front of them and almost gave Soarin a heart attack. He should be used to this by now, but this mare could surprise anypony.

"Urrr…hey there, Surprise," Soarin mumbled, as he got over the shock. He, Rainbow Dash and Braeburn had all fallen to the ground after Surprise jumped out at them.

"You okay down there, Soarin?" Surprise asked, smiling widely.

"Yeah, my muffin broke my fall," the pale blue stallion replied, standing up to reveal that he'd landed on his muffin when he fell.

"You're not gonna eat that now, right?" Braeburn asked his friend, pointing a hoof at the muffin.

"Of course not," Soarin replied, tossing the muffin in the air and kicking it with one of his hind hooves. It made an arc in the air before landing in the trash can.

"That was awesome!" Rainbow Dash congratulated the Wonderbolt co-captain, giving him a slap on the back.

"Yeah, nice shot, Soarin," Surprise joined in, grabbing one of the remaining two muffins off the plate and taking a huge bite out of it.

"Hey, you could at least ask before you take a muffin," Soarin scolded the yellow maned Wonderbolt as she chewed happily on the treat. She gulped it down before replying.

"Sorry," She apologized. "But, your buddy's cooking is just so good!" She licked her lips.

"Oh yeah, Surprise, have you introduced yourself to Braeburn, yet?" Soarin asked her, nodding at his old friend. Surprise eagerly hopped over to Braeburn and began vigorously shaking his hoof.

"Well, it's nice to meet ya, Braeburn, and may I just say that you make amazing muffins," She greeted. "I'm Surprise, official Wonderbolt flier and party planner at your service," She bowed at the last part, making Braeburn chuckle.

"Nice ta meet ya, too, Surprise, and thanks for the compliment about the muffins. It's an old Apple family recipe," The earth pony replied as Surprise let go of his hoof.

"Apple family, huh?" Surprise tilted her head to the side. "Then you must be related to Applejack and Big Macintosh, right?" She guessed.

"Yeah, they're mah cousins," Braeburn replied. Surprise gave a little bounce.

"I've met Applejack before," She told him. "She's really nice. I haven't met Big Macintosh before, but Fleetfoot's told me about him before. She also told me that you remind her of him," She added.

"Really?" Braeburn asked, looking surprised, ironically enough. Personally, Soarin thought that he was nothing like Big Macintosh. Fleetfoot had told Soarin about Big Mac several times before, since she'd met him in Ponyville shortly after she'd got knocked out of the sky by a firework. She'd become smitten with him and began stalking him, so that firework must have hit her head harder than he'd thought.

"Yep," Was all Surprise said. She suddenly looked over to plate as Rainbow Dash grabbed the last muffin off the plate. "Hey, can I take some of those muffins for me, High Winds and Blaze?" She asked.

"Sure, lemme just get some more," Braeburn headed back to the counter and brought back a plate with six muffins on it. "There ya go," He passed them to Surprise whose mouth began to water as she stared at the delicious snacks.

"Thanks, Braeburn. You're awesome!" She could barely be understood with the plate of muffins in her mouth. "Bye, Rainbow Dash!" She waved to the cyan mare as she left the kitchen and headed to the table where Blaze and High Winds were still talking.

"Well, it's certainly not every day you get called 'awesome'," Soarin teased Braeburn, who gave him an irritated glare.

"Well, she seemed friendly," Braeburn commented and he returned to rolling out the dough for some more apple pies.

"Yeah, Surprise is the easiest Wonderbolt to get along with," Rainbow Dash told him. "When I first met her, all I said was 'hi' before she started rambling on and on about us becoming the best of friends and stuff like that," She recalled. Soarin had been there when that had happened. It wasn't long after she'd saved his pie at the gala. Surprise could get excited about _anything._

"Rainbow Dash, are you in here?"

Soarin recognized the voice of the purple pegasus that was hanging out with Dash earlier. Rainbow Dash whipped around as she heard her name called. She looked over her shoulder at Soarin, then back to the kitchen door.

"You'd better go see what she wants," Soarin told her.

"Yeah, I guess," Dash sounded almost sad to leave. Then again, being trained by a Wonderbolt was pretty exciting for her. If he were her, he wouldn't want to part with his mentor either. "But, you never got to show me any of your signature tricks," She reminded him. Soarin had forgotten that he'd said he'd show her some of his moves.

"Well…I guess I can show you tomorrow after drills are finished," Soarin shrugged. Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow at him.

"Promise?" She asked. Soarin rolled his eyes and smiled.

"I promise," He replied, earning a bright smile from the rainbow maned mare.

"Catch ya later, Soarin!" She called over her shoulder as she went through the double doors. Braeburn by then was making some apple brown betty's. Soarin took the opportunity to try and take one of the pies. He silently crept up to the counter and grabbed one of them. He then attempted to sneak out of the kitchen with the pie balanced on his back. He froze as the door squeaked as he began to open it and he heard Braeburn yell at him from behind. Soarin gasped and galloped out of the kitchen, into the mess hall, then out the door into the training grounds with Braeburn galloping behind him.

"Get back here, Soarin. If ya want pie, wait for lunch like everypony else!" The earth pony ordered him.

"But where's the fun it that?" Soarin yelled over his shoulder as he raced across the cloudy ground.

"Ya know, eventually ah will catch you!" Braeburn shouted at his high school friend.

"In your dreams, Brae, I'm one of fastest fliers in Equestria, so naturally, I should be a fast runner, too," he argued. "GAH!" Soarin suddenly tripped and tumbled over. Braeburn skilfully jumped over his friend and caught the pie on his back.

"You were saying?" He gave Soarin a smug look as the pale blue stallion picked himself up, a little dazed from his fall.

"Er…never mind," He groaned, rubbing his now sore head.

…**..**

"Bye, guys," Rainbow Dash said as she closed the door to her and Spring Song's room. Ever since she had left Soarin and Braeburn in the kitchen, she, Lullaby, Sugar Swoop, Spring Song, Paradise and Ray had been hanging out in her dorm. They'd told eachother about competitions they had flown in, their first time watching a Wonderbolts air show and just random things about themselves. All of them had been speechless after Rainbow Dash told them how she'd saved Soarin, Spitfire and Misty Fly's lives in the Best Young Flier competition and performed a Sonic Rainboom. She'd promised to show them one tomorrow.

"I'm beat," Spring Song yawned, leaping onto her bed. Rainbow Dash chuckled at her.

"Ya know, it's surprising you're so tired when we haven't even done any drills, yet," She told the pink pegasus.

"Well, it is one in the morning," Spring Song nodded up at the clock. Rainbow Dash looked too, sure enough it was exactly one O'clock. How had time gone by so fast?

"Well…maybe you're right. We need to be up early for drills," Rainbow Dash agreed, letting out a small yawn, herself. She switched off the light and got into bed, switching on her bedside lamp, as she hadn't written a letter to her friends today. She picked up a quill, spread some paper across the surface of the bedside table and began to write...

'_Sup, everypony?_

_Guess who the first cadet to try out the air obstacle course was?_

_ME, that's who!_

_Well, technically, I'm the _only_ cadet that's tried the air obstacle course out so far. Soarin is the best mentor ever. He even let me perform a Sonic Rainboom! _

_Hey Applejack, can I just say that the Apple Family muffin recipe is fantastic. Braeburn made a batch and it was kinda like eating happiness!_

_Tomorrow's the first day of drills, and I need to be up and at 'em at the crack of dawn…well, maybe not exactly the crack of dawn, but pretty early, anyway._

_Wish me luck, not that I'll need it._

_Yours epically,_

_Rainbow Dash.'_

Rainbow Dash rolled up her letter and put it on the table beside her lamp. She crawled under the covers and rested her head on her pillow, giving a relaxed sigh at the warmth of her bed.

"Night, Spring Song," She yawned. The only reply from her roommate was the sound of soft snoring. Rainbow Dash let out a silent laugh before reaching over to her bedside table and switching off the light.

…**..**

**Endnote: So, chapter two has reached its end. From now on I'll try and get one chapter done per week, and I put extra emphasis on 'try'. I have a busy life outside the computer, too, you know. So, tune in next time when Rainbow Dash has her first lesson at the boot camp.**


	3. The First Day, part 1

"GAAAAAAH!"

Rainbow Dash and Spring Song sat upright in their beds, screaming with surprise as the sound of a bugle blared. Dash tumbled out of her bed, startled at the sudden cacophony and her bed sheets landed on top of her. When the sound of the bugle finally ceased, Rainbow Dash pulled the covers off her and groaned, rubbing her head where she'd bumped it on the ground.

"I hope wake up calls aren't like that all the time," The cyan mare grumbled, grudgingly getting to her hooves and stretching. Spring Song groaned as she looked in the mirror, seeing that she had an extreme case of bedhead. She grabbed her hairbrush and began trying to comb her blond mane into its usual straight, shoulder length style.

"What time is it?" Spring Song asked Rainbow Dash, smiling at her now perfect mane. Rainbow Dash blinked the last of the sleep from her eyes and looked up at the clock.

6:AM.

There's a 6:**AM**?

Rainbow couldn't remember ever getting up that early. While Spring Song was busy applying some blush to her cheeks, Rainbow Dash grabbed her toothbrush and toothpaste and decided to go to the shower rooms to freshen up. After a morning shower she felt ready and rearing to go.

She returned to her room to put on her cadet uniform and found that Spring Song had already put her one on and was posing in front of the mirror. She flushed red with embarrassment as Rainbow Dash came in and Dash couldn't hold in her laughter.

"Um…'sup?" Was all Spring Song said, making Rainbow Dash laugh harder. Lullaby and Sugar Swoop suddenly appeared at Rainbow's side.

"What's going on?" Sugar Swoop asked. Rainbow Dash snickered a final time before replying.

"Spring Song's just practising modelling," She teased her roommate, who turned an even brighter shade of red.

"No I'm not," She whimpered. She then decided to change the subject. "I'll meet you three outside, I'm gonna go find Ray and Paradise," The pink pegasus left the room and headed down the hallways to find her friends.

"She's right, we should go outside," Lullaby agreed as Spring Song vanished round the corner. The three pegasi made their way to the training grounds, where several of the other cadets were already in a straight line. They joined the end and Rainbow Dash took the opportunity to look over the other pegasi.

At the other end of the line stood a short orange stallion with a green mane that tumbled into his eyes and a shaggy looking green tail. His cutie mark was three thunderclouds. He was arguing with the two mares beside him.

One of the mares was light blue with a white mane and tail which had a dark blue streak through the middle of them. Her cutie mark was three bees. She seemed to be winning the argument since the stallion and the other mare looked irritated with her, while she wore a smug expression.

The other mare was dark pink with a white dandelion cutie mark. Her lemon yellow mane was worn in a ponytail and her tail twisted a little like Rarity's.

Spring Song, now joined by Paradise and Ray joined Rainbow Dash, Lullaby and Sugar Swoop at the end of the line. Rainbow nudged Spring Song as she stood beside her. "Do ya know who those three ponies are?" She pointed a hoof at the ponies she had been examining.

"Yeah, they told me their names yesterday," Spring Song replied. The stallion's name is Tempest. He says that he's done a Sonic Rainboom before, but nopony believes him. Those two mares with him told me he was a huge liar. The blue one's Bumble and she comes from a family of beekeepers. It's no wonder she wants to become a Wonderbolt with all the stings her family have probably had. The pink one's Beau and both her parents are Earth Pony's. It's only thanks to a past generation that she was born with wings."

"Wow, you sure know a lot about these ponies," Rainbow Dash commented.

"Yeah, after I found my name on the room map, I stopped to get to know some of the pegasi I'd be flying with. Bet you never thought of that," Spring Song replied, prodding Rainbow in the shoulder.

"I hadn't," Rainbow Dash admitted, feeling a little ashamed that she hadn't stopped to get to know any of the other cadets. She'd just been too excited and distracted. She had, however, counted the pegasi in the room. There were fourteen cadets, including herself. So she now knew Spring Song, Lullaby, Sugar Swoop, Ray Paradise, Bumble, Tempest and Beau, which left six for her to find out about.

Rainbow Dash pointed towards a pair of ponies, one a mare, one a stallion, who seemed to be laughing over some kind of joke. The stallion had a gleaming beige coat and a short black mane and tail that seemed symmetrical no matter which way you looked at it. His cutie mark was a pile of bits. Rainbow Dash wondered what his special talent could possibly be. The mare he was with was black with a constellation as her cutie mark. She had a white mane with a yellow streak that tumbled past her shoulders in waves. Her tail was wavy, too, with an identical yellow streak. "What about those two?" Dash asked Spring Song, who groaned.

"The stallion's Smart Set, he's the youngest cadet. He's a real snob if you ask me. There's a rumour going around that his parents just bribed the Wonderbolts into letting him into the boot camp."

"Yeesh," Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head. He sure did look like an upper class pony. "What about her?" She pointed over to the black mare.

"That's Stargazer. She comes from a family of astronomers, hence the name. She may not look it, but she's a real egghead," Spring Song spat out the word 'egghead' like it was a rude word.

The four remaining cadets suddenly arrived and joined the end of the line looking a little panicky, as if they were scared that they were late. Spring Song immediately told Rainbow Dash who they were. She pointed at a blue mare with a purple and black mane that she wore in pigtails.

"That's Cinder. She's pretty shy, so I don't know all that much about her," Spring Song explained before nodding at the cream stallion with a yellow buzz cut and a brown oak leaf cutie mark next to Cinder. "That there's Free Fall. I don't actually know anything about him because, like you, he left right after he found his name on the map."

"How do ya know his name, then?" Dash asked curiously. Spring Song pointed to the mare beside Free Fall.

"She told me. That's his cousin, Butternut," She replied. Butternut was the same colour as peanut butter and had a light blond, almost white mane. Her cutie mark was a leaf floating on a breeze. "She never shuts up. She came up to me, introduced herself and started babbling on and on about…something I can't remember. I couldn't get a word in. That's why I was so late to our room. She refused to stop talking."

"Well, what about the last one?" Rainbow Dash nodded towards the mare at the end of the line. She had a greenish-blue coat, a brown mop of a mane and a stubby brown tail. Her cutie mark appeared to be a splatter of paint.

"That's Stains. I wouldn't be surprised if she was raised on a pig farm," Spring Song drawled. Rainbow Dash had never seen this side of the pink pegasus before. Stains did look a little…messy, but why was that such a big deal for Spring Song? Well, on the bright side, she knew all the cadets names, now. All she had to worry about now was remembering them all.

"My legs are getting stiff," Lullaby complained from further along the line. "When is Spitfire gonna show up?"

"Say somethin', rookie?"

"GAH!" Lullaby almost jumped out of her skin as Spitfire suddenly appeared beside her, wearing her captain's uniform. Rainbow let out a giggle at Lullaby's reaction. The purple pegasus clutched her chest, hyperventilating from the shock. "Don't do that!"

Spitfire gave Lullaby a stern glare. "And who gave you the right to give me orders? Last time I checked, _I _was meant to give _you _orders. Is there some kind of rule change that nopony told me about?"

"Um…no," Lullaby replied, shaking a little. Spitfire stood straighter, so she could tower a little over Lullaby.

"No, _what?" _She questioned. Lullaby gulped.

"No, _ma'am,"_ She corrected herself. Spitfire began pacing along the line of cadets.

"I'm gonna skip the whole 'Welcome to the boot camp' mumbo-jumbo and cut right to the chase. While you're here you will forget about your daily routines back home. So, no staying in bed until noon, no goofing around, no huge parties. As Fleetfoot said when you arrived: You must eat, sleep and breathe Wonderbolts."

"Yes, ma'am!" The cadets all said in unison. Spitfire took a moment to readjust her shades before continuing.

"I'm sure that all of you want to get to the drills, right?"

"Yes, ma'am!" The cadets replied once again.

"So, for your first day, you'll be performing your best trick for me," Spitfire told them. Rainbow Dash glowed when she heard this. Her Sonic Rainboom would be the best trick by far.

"This'll be great," Spring Song whispered to Paradise, quiet enough that Spitfire couldn't hear her. The flame maned-pegasus strolled down the line, looking over the cadets. She walked right past Rainbow Dash and halted in front of Cinder.

"You, you're up. Show everypony your best trick," Spitfire ordered the blue mare. Cinder hesitantly took off into the sky. Rainbow Dash remembered Spring Song telling her about how timid Cinder was. Cinder took a deep breath before zooming forward and completing seven barrel rolls in a roll. Even Rainbow Dash was a little impressed. Doing even _five_ barrel rolls in a row was quite difficult for most pegasi. The most Rainbow Dash had ever done in a row was fifteen, and she had gotten super dizzy after that and ended up crashing into a tree. Cinder joined the other cadets on the ground, looking pleased with herself.

"That was great," Free Fall complimented her.

"Not bad," Spitfire commented. "But, don't go 'round bragging about it." The yellow pegasus picked Paradise to perform a trick next. She managed to do eight loop-the-loops in a row complete with a nose dive, which she pulled up out of just before making contact with the ground.

Beau messed up her spinning dive by forgetting to pull up and bursting right through the cloudy floor.

Ray did an awesome routine by making clouds spin and then busting through them, making them explode into smaller clouds.

Bumble made an idiot out of herself by attempting to do several barrel rolls and losing control of herself. She ended up plummeting to the ground and colliding into Beau. After the two of them were confirmed to be okay, Smart Set flew upside down for most of his routine before turning right side up and speeding round and round in a loop, ending with a dive downwards, leaving a black, smoky trail behind him.

Free Fall and Butternut were given permission to do their trick together. They just flew in a straight line while looping around eachother. Rainbow Dash personally thought that that trick looked pretty difficult. She preferred to fly alone, so she had never tried that trick before.

Spring Song spun round and round until she created a giant tornado, which she burst out the top of, leaving a pink and yellow trail in her wake. Rainbow Dash was a little awestruck. Spring Song's performance had been the best so far.

Sugar Swoop did one of the Wonderbolts signature moves, flying in several arcs and twists before zooming straight up into the air and making a firework like explosion.

Lullaby crashed through one cloud after another and each one she crashed through made the cloudy trail she left behind thicker and longer. She ended her trick by flicking herself upside down and sending the clouds slicing through the air until they just poofed from existence.

Stargazer seemed to flow through the whole of her routine, enjoying every single moment of it. She did a series of elegant swoops and twirls before landing gracefully back in the line.

Stains was a little nervous and she made a huge mistake in her routine. She was probably aiming to do a Spit-Blitz, Spitfire's special trick, so she could impress her. She spun round and round and round some more, building up friction, but eventually, she had just spun out of control and flung herself across the sky, landing with a loud thud on the cloudy ground.

Rainbow Dash was last, and she wondered why, but she had no time to ponder that. It was time to perform the Sonic Rainboom. Everyone gazed in awe at her and she increased in speed, the pressure building up on her sides until her wings screamed with agony. She kept going faster…

…and faster…

…and faster…

…until….

BOOM!

There was the rainbow explosion as Rainbow Dash broke the sound barrier and whizzed across the sky. She could hear the oohs and aahs of the other cadets and she made an arc across the sky. When she landed every cadet applauded her. She couldn't wait for Spitfire to congratulate her.

"Nice work, Rainbow Dash," Was all the Wonderbolt captain said.

WHAT!?

That was it?

Just 'nice work'?

Spitfire looked up to see the position of the sun. It was right in the centre of the sky. "Listen up! It's 1200 hours, so you can go to the mess hall for lunch. I want you back out here in exactly half an hour," She told the cadets, flicking her hoof as a signal for them all to go. Paradise paused to speak to Spitfire.

"Actually, ma'am, there's no such thing as 1200 hours. I think it's about noon by now," She said, sounding proud that she was 'correcting' Spitfire, who just put her head in a hoof and mumbled something under her breath.

Rainbow Dash walked away, hanging her head, disappointed by Spitfire's reaction to her trick. She suddenly felt a hoof tap her shoulder and she turned to see the drill sergeant there.

"Hey, Dash, can you just hang back for a second?" She asked, smiling at her. Rainbow Dash shrugged and stayed behind.

"What is it, ma'am?" The cyan pegasus asked. Spitfire took her shades off, a sign that showed that she was about to say something serious.

"I just wanted to apologise for not giving you a proper congratulations. Your Sonic Rainboom is the greatest trick I've ever seen," She confessed, earning a ginormous smile from Rainbow.

"REALLY?!" The rainbow-maned mare beamed, her eyes growing wide with pride.

"Of course. I didn't show it earlier because…" She looked around to make sure nopony was there. "…as your instructor I'm not allowed to show favouritism," She whispered. Rainbow Dash began repeating 'ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh' in her head.

She was Spitfire's favourite cadet!

Then again, it wasn't that big of a surprise.

"So, that's why you chose me last? Because you wanted to save the best until the end?" Rainbow Dash bragged, puffing out her chest.

"I guess you could say that," Spitfire chuckled. The golden pegasus looked over in the direction of the mess hall. "Now, you'd better go and grab a bite to eat. When you come back outside you're gonna be flying through those rings," She pointed up at some hoops mounted on long poles. They looked like fun. Rainbow Dash gave Spitfire a salute before flapping off to the mess hall. The cyan mare halted suddenly and looked over her shoulder at Spitfire.

"Hey, aren't you gonna eat something in the mess hall, too?" She asked. Surely, Spitfire needed some lunch, too. The drill sergeant shook her head.

"Nah, I'm gonna eat lunch in my office," She replied. Rainbow Dash's curiosity was getting the better of her.

"Why do you eat alone?" She asked with a concerned look in her eyes. Surely, she'd be the kind of pony who loved to be surrounded by others. Spitfire just shrugged.

"I just…I like being alone."

"Why?" Rainbow Dash asked again. Spitfire looked like she was getting a little irritated and Rainbow briefly wondered if she should just leave now to avoid getting scolded.

"Sometimes it's good to be alone. It gives you time to think. Ya know, think about new tricks or new drills. Understand, Dash?" Spitfire explained. Rainbow Dash did understand. She was the captain, so it seemed right that she would be thinking over new moves and stuff like that. But nopony deserved to be alone all the time. Granted, Spitfire probably wasn't alone _all_ the time, but she could probably use a few more friends. Dash decided that she might ask Spitfire to hang out with her and Soarin when he showed her his awesome tricks later.

"Hey, Dash," Spitfire snapped Rainbow Dash from her thoughts. "Why are ya still here? You're friends are probably waitin' on you," She scolded Dash playfully, beginning to walk away.

"Oh yeah. See ya later, ma'am!" Rainbow Dash gave a final salute before whizzing off to the mess hall to grab some grub.

…**...**

"Soarin, there's no way you'll be able to eat all that!" Braeburn scolded Soarin as the pale blue pegasus put a fifth slice of apple pie on his plate. Soarin looked at Braeburn as if he'd just told him he'd got cancer.

"Brae, have you forgotten who I am," Soarin cleared his throat. "I am Soarin, co-captain of the Wonderbolts, all around awesome pony and the only stallion in Equestria to have a bottomless pit in his stomach made specifically for pies," He ranted, standing up tall.

The two of them were in the kitchen. Braeburn assisted the cadets as they chose their lunch and Soarin just sat at the counter behind him about to pig out on five MASSIVE slices of pie. Braeburn turned to Soarin after wiping some backed beans from the counter.

"But, if ya eat all that, you'll get a stomach ache," He told the pegasus, obviously worried for his friend. Soarin made a noise that sounded like a mix between a chuckle and a neigh.

"Everypony knows that's just a bunch of crab-apples," He waved the whole idea away and took a bite out of the first slice of pie. Braeburn sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Fine, go ahead and eat 'em. But don't come runnin' to me when you're too stuffed to move," the earth pony turned back to the counter where one of the cadets was scooping up some mashed potato. Soarin completed the first slice of pie in no time at all and quickly moved on to his second slice. He was halfway done when Rainbow Dash came through the door.

"'Sup, guys," She asked Soarin and Braeburn, who turned to give her a glare.

"Didn't you see the 'staff only' sign?" He asked her, pointing at the door. Rainbow Dash stepped over to the counter.

"What if I helped you out here? Wouldn't that make me 'staff'?" She asked, grabbing a weird spoony thing. She began 'helping' Braeburn at the counter.

"Please just let me do it," The earth pony stallion gave an exasperated sigh.

"Why, because you're jealous of my awesome spoon skills?" Rainbow Dash bragged.

"No, because you're scooping ice cream with a ladle," He took the spoony thing from Rainbow Dash and went to the sink to wash the ice cream off it. Rainbow turned to Soarin and sat at the opposite side of the counter.

"Hey, Soarin," She greeted cheerfully. "Why are you eating on a stove?"

"I'm actually more next to the stove than on the stove," Soarin corrected her, finishing off his second slice of pie. Rainbow Dash eyed his plate of pie, looking a little concerned.

"Um…are you gonna eat _all _of that?" She asked, nodding at the plate. Soarin swallowed his mouthful of pie before replying.

"Yes. I have to so I can prove Braeburn wrong," He said before taking another large bite. Rainbow shrugged it off. "So, how's drills going?" He asked. Rainbow gave a little squee before replying.

"AWESOME! I performed a Sonic Rainboom in front of everypony and they all loved it!" She rambled, her eyes glowing with excitement.

"Well, I'm honoured to be the first at the boot camp to see one," He smiled, now beginning his fourth slice of pie, trying his best to ignore the churning in his stomach. Maybe he should have cut smaller slices.

"We're gonna be flying through hoops next," Rainbow told Soarin, fidgeting with excitement in her seat.

"A little advice," Soarin began, swallowing his mouthful of pie. "Try flying through each hoop more than once if you really want to show off."

"I was gonna do that, anyway, but thanks," Rainbow replied, grabbing an apple from Braeburn's huge supply of them and taking a bite. Soarin chuckled. She thought ahead when it came to performances, like he did, and it was important for Wonderbolts to stay one step ahead.

"You're gonna want to eat more than that," Soarin nodded at the apple in Rainbow Dash's hoof as he finished his fourth slice of pie and eyed the fifth and final slice warily, unsure whether he could handle another slice. NO! He had to eat it so he could prove to Braeburn that his stomach could handle any amount of pie that was shoved at him.

"I'm too excited to eat anything more," Rainbow Dash told Soarin, wiping the apple juice from around her mouth.

"Well, at least try. You need to keep your strength up," He advised her, now halfway through his fifth slice of pie.

"Fine," Rainbow sighed, grabbing another apple and throwing the core of the other one in the trash. Soarin stuffed the last of his pie in his mouth; though his stomach practically screamed for him to just stop eating. As he swallowed, he let out a cheer.

"In your face!" He yelled at Braeburn, though the earth pony didn't seem to hear. He was busy wiping up some jelly from the counter and muttering something under his breath. Soarin couldn't understand how Braeburn could take this job. Cooking so much seemed pretty difficult and he had to clean up after the cadets every once in a while. Soarin couldn't imagine not being a Wonderbolt. It was the greatest job ever in his eyes.

"Wow, I can't believe you ate all of that," Rainbow Dash gaped at the now bare plate. "Each slice was like the size of your head!"

"I know. But when it comes to pie, my stomach can contain any number of slices," Soarin bragged, patting his visibly stuffed tummy. Rainbow Dash finished her apple and tossed it over her shoulder into the trash. She looked up at the clock.

"I guess I should get going. I need to be back outside in two minutes," She told Soarin, the excited glow returning to her eyes.

"Okay. Catch ya later Dash. I promise that I'll show you that trick after you're done," He waved as she left the kitchen. Braeburn finally finished cleaning the counter and let out a sigh, tossing the food covered rag he was using into the trash can. He turned and sat in the chair that Rainbow Dash was sitting in moments ago.

"Man, when ya told me ah had to be a cook, ah didn't think that meant wipin' up spilt food every five seconds," He groaned. Soarin's tummy suddenly gave a lurch and he clutched it.

"Ugh…" The pale blue pegasus gurgled. "I think I need to lie down. My tummy doesn't feel right."

Braeburn gave Soarin a look that said '_I told you so'._

"Crab-apples," He chuckled.

…**..**

**Endnote: So, this is going to be a two part chapter because this was getting a little long. I'd like to keep Dashing and Soaring at 4000-5000 words per chapter so you guys don't have to wait too long for chapters to be uploaded. Tune in next time to see the second half of Rainbow Dash's first day at the boot camp.**


	4. The First Day, part 2

Spitfire paced back and forth along the cloudy ground, awaiting the return of the cadets. Her two assistants, Whiplash and Fast Clip stood close behind her, Fast Clip looking at the clipboard he was holding, a thoughtful expression on his face while Whiplash stared into space. Spitfire didn't even bother snapping him out of his trance. Why did she need to when the cadets hadn't even shown up yet?

"What time is it?" She asked Fast Clip, who obediently checked his watch.

"12:29, ma'am," he replied. Spitfire nodded in thanks and glanced over to the mess hall, where a couple of the cadets were beginning to come back outside. After the drills had ended, Spitfire would go to her office and look over the cadets stats. She liked to know things about the pegasi she would be commanding so she knew which ones to go harder on. There was no doubt in her mind that Rainbow Dash was the best cadet here. Ponies all over Equestria looked up to Spitfire, but Rainbow Dash was the only pony that _Spitfire _idolised. She was super-fast, could do a Sonic Rainboom and was just plain awesome. Spitfire thought that Dash may even be faster than _herself_.

"_She'd make a great Wonderbolt" _Spitfire thought to herself. For quite some time now Spitfire had wanted to get Dash into the Wonderbolts, but she had decided that right now her friends needed her more. She was the Element of Loyalty after all. If Equestria was in some kind of danger, Dash would have to be there, not in Cloudsdale performing. Spitfire had confirmed that Rainbow Dash would become a Wonderbolt eventually, but for now, the cyan mare had enough on her plate being a hero of Equestria.

Spitfire was snapped from her thoughts by Fast Clip coughing.

"You'd better be coughing 'cause you swallowed a bug, Fast Clip," Spitfire told him. The white pegasus dipped his head in a mix of shame and embarrassment. Spitfire mumbled something under her breath. She didn't want anypony getting sick around here, especially the newbies.

"Um…it's 12:30 now, ma'am," Fast Clip informed her, obviously still a little nervous about the whole coughing thing. Thirteen of the fourteen cadets were standing in a line before her now, all whispering stuff to eachother.

"Quit your kitten whispering this instant!" Spitfire barked at them. They immediately stopped talking and stood straight. She motioned for Fast Clip to pass her his clipboard, which had the names of all the cadets on it. "It's roll call time. Simple enough, I call out your name and you say 'here'. Pfft, it's elementary school all over again," She added to nopony in particular. She cleared her throat before calling out the names.

"Beau!" She called out.

"Here!" Came the reply from the dark pink mare near the middle of the line.

"Bumble!"

"Here,"

"Cinder!"

All that Spitfire heard was a timid whimper.

"Cinder?" She repeated.

"Um…here ma'am," the blue mare replied, raising a shaky hoof. Normally when this happened, Spitfire would scold the cadet for not being loud enough. But she just couldn't yell at Cinder. She was too... innocent. It would be like yelling at a puppy. She just sighed and continued the roll call.

"Free Fall!"

"Here!"

"Lullaby!"

"Here!"

"Paradise!"

No reply.

"Paradise?"

Still no reply.

"Final call for Paradise!"

Nothing. Spitfire gave the clipboard back to Fast Clip, having found the culprit. "Do any of you know where Paradise is?" Spitfire interrogated the cadets.

"No, ma'am!" They all said together. The flapping of wings was suddenly heard and everypony looked up to see none other than Paradise hurtling towards them. The green mare touched down on the ground and joined the end of the line, looking a little nervous. Spitfire took her shades off, marched over to Paradise and gave her a menacing glare.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" She asked her.

"It's 12:34, ma'am," Fast Clip replied, making Spitfire face-hoof.

"I wasn't talking to you," She called over her shoulder. Paradise hesitantly spoke, choking her words out.

"Well…four minutes isn't _that _late," She gave a nervous chuckle as she stared up into the fiery orange eyes of her drill sergeant.

"Do you wanna be a Wonderbolt?" Was all Spitfire asked. Paradise looked confused. She had without a doubt expected the flame maned pegasus to scold her some more. Her choice of question confused Paradise.

"What?" She asked, making sure that she hadn't just imagined the question. Spitfire rolled her eyes.

"I said 'Do you wanna be a Wonderbolt?" She repeated, a little louder. Paradise nodded fiercely, not wanting to irritate Spitfire further.

"Yes, ma'am," She said.

"Then show up on time! If you were four minutes late to a real airshow, the other Wonderbolts would have gone on without you. Wonderbolts are meant to be fast, so there are no excuses for being late," Spitfire lectured Paradise, who shuffled her hooves before talking.

"Well…I got lost," Paradise muttered, looking down at the ground. Spitfire looked bewildered.

"How?" She asked. All you had to do to get to the mess hall was walk through the double doors. It wasn't exactly rocket science.

"I…went through the wrong door," the green mare replied. Spitfire raised an eyebrow. Surely nopony could be so dumb.

"All you had to do was go through the same door you came in," She pointed a hoof over towards the mess hall. Paradise dipped her head lower, obviously feeling stupid.

"I forgot which door I came through," She said. At this, Spitfire's left eye began twitching. This was a sure-fire sign that she was annoyed.

"You're kidding, right?" Spitfire asked. As Paradise opened her mouth to speak, Spitfire raised a hoof to stop her. "Ya know what, I don't have time for this," She sighed and put her sunglasses back on, stepping back so she could address all of the cadets.

"So, all you're going to be doing is flying through those rings," Spitfire pointed up to the hoops and the cadets immediately began chattering to one another about how exciting this was gonna be. Though, they did become a little nervous when they discovered that Spitfire hadn't finished her sentence.

"…Blindfolded."

* * *

><p>"It's good to finally get you out of that kitchen. I was beginning to think you were sleeping in there," Soarin joked as he and Braeburn walked through the empty hallways. Soarin had managed to drag Braeburn out of the kitchen at long last and he was determined to introduce him to some of the other Wonderbolts<p>

"Where are we goin'?" Braeburn asked him as the pale blue pegasus led him around another corner.

"To the staff room, of course," Soarin replied, earning a groan from Braeburn.

"Ah'm not so sure about this, buddy," He muttered. "Ah feel a little outta place as it is, bein' an Earth Pony and all."

Soarin stopped Braeburn in his tracks. "Everything's gonna be fine. Everyone here is a pony, wings or not," He tried to reassure his friend. Braeburn took his cowboy hat off and began twisting it, which he always did when he was nervous.

"Well, what if they don't like me?"

Soarin was a little shocked at this. Braeburn was one of the most likeable ponies around. He was friendly and easy to get along with; Soarin couldn't see how anypony wouldn't like such a kind stallion.

"They won't," the Wonderbolt co-captain told Braeburn, making the Appaloosan Earth Pony drop his hat with surprise.

"What?" He gasped as his jaw dropped; surprised his old friend would say something like that.

"They'll _love _you," Soarin smiled, causing Braeburn to give him a playful shove. "I bet that all of the Wonderbolts will be _begging_ to be friends with you."

"Well maybe not _beggin'_," Braeburn shrugged, feeling a little better after Soarin's short pep-talk. They finally arrived outside the staff room, which was painted blue with a sign on it shaped like a Wonderbolt badge. Soarin adjusted the tie of his officer's uniform before pushing the door open. He and Braeburn were greeted by the smiles and waves of several Wonderbolts. Fire Streak and Lightning Streak, the two brothers were arguing about something in one corner of the room, Fleetfoot was at the espresso machine, High Winds, Surprise and Blaze were all sitting on the black leather couch at the side of the room deep in conversation and Rapidfire was taking a nap on the plush red chair on the opposite side of the room. The walls were painted blue, like the door and there was a huge window going along both sides of the room. The ceiling was painted dark blue and a few months ago Surprise had flown up there and painted clouds, the Sun and a bunch of birds to make it look like the sky. The floor was covered with a soft white rug, which kinda reminded Soarin of a cloud. Braeburn just stood there in the doorway looking like he had no idea what to do with himself, which he didn't.

Soarin motioned for Braeburn to follow him over to the couch next to Blaze, High Winds and Surprise. He hesitantly made his way into the room, closing the door behind him and cautiously trotted over and sat down on the couch. Just as Soarin was about to get up and get some coffee Surprise practically launched herself over to him.

"Hi, Soarin, hi Braeburn," She greeted, giving them one of her massive smiles. Braeburn's face lit up a little at seeing another of the Wonderbolts he knew.

"Afternoon, Surprise," Braeburn greeted her, tipping his cowboy hat to her and sitting up straighter. Surprise gestured for High Winds and Blaze to come over and Soarin could practically see Braeburn's confidence melting away.

"What is it, Surprise?" Blaze asked as she and High Winds came over to stand beside the white mare. Surprise nodded over to Braeburn, who looked like her was considering whether to leave or not.

"I just wanted you two to meet Soarin's buddy Braeburn. He's the greatest cook ever!" Surprise replied, throwing her arms into the air. High Winds and Blaze gave Braeburn kind smiles which seemed to calm him down.

"So, you're the Earth Pony that I heard some of the cadets talking about, huh?" High Winds asked, holding out her hoof. "It's nice to finally meet you."

"Um…thank you, ma'am," Braeburn smiled back at the curly maned mare, shaking her hoof before proceeding to shake Blaze's. Surprise put her arms around Blaze and High Winds and began introducing them.

"These are my two bestest friends in the whole world: Blaze-," She patted the orange maned pegasus on her shoulder. "-and High Winds," She did the same for the other mare.

"Nice to meet ya," Blaze grinned. Soarin was relieved at his teammates' friendliness towards Braeburn; the Earth Pony stallion seemed a lot less nervous now. Surprise pointed over to Fire Streak and Lightning Streak, who had finally settled their argument and were staring out the window at the cadets training. "Those two are Lightning Streak and Fire Streak. Just in case you can't tell, they're brothers," Surprise explained. The white mare then pointed over to Rapidfire, who was snoring loudly.

"That over there is Rapidfire, the laziest Wonderbolt ever…besides Soarin," Surprise said.

"Hey!" Soarin snapped at Surprise. He wasn't that lazy…was he? Soarin had no time to ponder his laziness because he heard some hoof steps coming over. He looked up to see Fleetfoot heading towards them.

"Hi there, Braeburn. Long time, no thee," She lisped, smiling at him. Soarin remembered when Braeburn had first arrived; Fleetfoot was the only Wonderbolt to introduce herself to him. She was super friendly…almost _too_ friendly if you asked Soarin. Soarin was snapped from his thoughts by Fleetfoot grabbing him by an arm and practically throwing him off the chair. When he turned around to ask Fleetfoot what the big deal was, she was sitting in the seat he was in not moments ago, chatting away to Braeburn like he was a celebrity! Soarin just rolled his eyes and walked over to the window. He had a perfect view of the cadets flying through hoops blindfolded. Soarin was familiar with the drill they were doing. They were blindfolded so they could learn to rely on other senses apart from sight. Soarin recalled the first time he tried out that drill. He mostly kept crashing into the rings or missing them entirely. But now he could make his way through the entire course blindfolded, backwards and upside down. One of the cadets crashed into a ring and plummeted to the ground and Soarin just couldn't hold in his laughter.

"Hey, Braeburn, you've gotta come and watch this," Soarin looked over his shoulder, but it looked like Braeburn was a little busy at the moment. He was surrounded by the other Wonderbolts. High Winds, Blaze and Surprise looked like they were explaining their 'dragon attack' plan to him. Knowing those three they'd twist the story around to make them seem like heroes. Lightning Streak and Fire Streak were standing on the other side of the couch rolling their eyes at the three mares, Fleetfoot was leaning against Braeburn looking like the cat that got the cream and even Rapidfire had awoken from his slumber to talk to the Earth Pony. Soarin had been sure from the start that the other Wonderbolts would like him.

He should have put money on it.

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash landed on the cloudy ground, narrowly missing bumping into Lullaby on the way down. She took of her blindfold and blinked a couple of times so that her eyes could adjust to the bright light of the sun. That was some challenge if Dash did say so herself. She had never realised just how much she relied on sight to fly. Maybe Soarin would let her practise on the rings after drills.<p>

"Nice work, newbies!" Spitfire congratulated the cadets as they came in for a landing and took off their blindfolds. "Drills are done for today, so the rest of the day is yours. Now get outta here, get to your rooms before curfew, eat your greens, yadda, yadda, yadda," Spitfire dismissed them all with a flick of her hoof and the cadets all left, separating into their different groups.

"Man that was crazy!" Lullaby laughed, rubbing her head. "I slammed face first into one of those rings."

Rainbow Dash chuckled along with her. "I took a couple of blows, myself," She admitted, feeling a little embarrassed that she'd crashed more times than she could count. She suddenly remembered.

"You go on without me. There's something I've gotta do," Rainbow told Lullaby, halting suddenly. Lullaby nodded.

"Sure, catch ya later, Dash," Lullaby smiled as she rushed ahead to catch up with Sugar Swoop. Rainbow Dash turned around to see Fast Clip and Whiplash flapping off towards the mess hall, while Spitfire went in the other direction towards the main door. Rainbow Dash whizzed over and stopped in front of her, giving the flame maned pegasus a fright. After the Wonderbolt captain had recovered from her shock she adjusted her shades and gave Rainbow Dash a glower.

"What's the big idea, Dash?" Spitfire questioned the rainbow maned mare, who shuffled her hooves, looking a little sheepish.

"Well…Soarin was gonna show me some tricks and I wondered if you wanted to come and watch, too," Rainbow Dash proposed. Spitfire looked down as if she were considering it before she looked back up.

"Sorry Dash, I can't," She responded, beginning to walk on. Rainbow Dash simply flew alongside her.

"How come?" She asked the yellow pegasus, who replied without even looking at Dash.

"Because I have some important stuff to do," She said with a slight grumble. Rainbow Dash continued interrogating the Wonderbolt.

"What sort of stuff?"

"Important stuff. Like looking over the cadet profiles," Spitfire gave Rainbow Dash a sideways glance. "And writing my first reports on the cadets' performances," Spitfire paused and put a hoof to her chin. "Hmm…it sure would be a shame if I 'accidentally' forgot to write a report on the awesome cyan mare that won't stop bugging me," She gave Dash a slight smirk. Rainbow Dash gasped, mostly because Spitfire had just threatened not to write a report on her but also because she had just called her _awesome._

Then again, she _was _awesome!

"Okay, ma'am, sorry ma'am, I'll go now, ma'am, thank you, ma'am-"

Spitfire gave Rainbow Dash a sharp slap on the shoulder.

"Hey, what was that for?" Dash asked, rubbing her shoulder. Spitfire sure could slap.

"I wanted to get you to shut up," Spitfire smiled, rolling her eyes. Rainbow gave a cheery laugh.

"Okay, bye, ma'am," Rainbow Dash waved before zooming off to find Soarin.

* * *

><p>Braeburn finished sweeping the last of the flour from the kitchen floor at long last and collapsed against the wall, wiping sweat from his brow.<p>

"That's the last time ah let you help me make pie," He scolded Soarin, who was lounging on a chair reading an issue of Wonderbolt Weekly. Braeburn eyed the magazine. "…and why are ya readin' your own magazine?"

Soarin looked up from the magazine to reply. "Just in case I want to read about myself, of course," He said like it was the most ridiculous question he had ever been asked. Braeburn walked over and peered over the pale blue stallions shoulder.

"What interestin' things could _you _possibly do?"

"A whole BUNCH of stuff, of course. Check this out," Soarin turned the page to reveal an entire two pages dedicated to a photo of him with a pie balanced on his head. Soarin looked up at Braeburn with a massive smile on his face. Braeburn just rolled his eyes.

"Ah can't believe ponies pay-" Braeburn turned the page to the front cover for the price tag. "-eight bits just to look at pictures of ya."

"It's not just pictures," Soarin argued. "This week there's a 'Which Wonderbolt Are You?' quiz," Soarin paused for a moment. "I got Misty Fly," He revealed. Braeburn raised an eyebrow.

"Wait. So, Soarin the Wonderbolt got Misty Fly on his 'Which Wonderbolt Are You' quiz?" he asked, a little bewildered.

"Yep," Soarin replied, still wearing his usual goofy smile. Braeburn stood there for a few more moments just processing if his friend really was this idiotic. He finally decided that Soarin _was_ and just walked away. He was just deciding whether he should serve ice cream or cake for dessert tomorrow when Rainbow Dash came bursting through the door, looking excited about something.

"Soarin, it's time!" She exclaimed, flapping over to the Wonderbolt co-captain, who looked up from his magazine.

"For what?" He asked, keeping one eye on the magazine. Rainbow rolled her eyes.

"Ya know, for you to show me that trick, of course," She began hopping from hoof to hoof in her impatience. Soarin's face lit up as he remembered.

"Oh yeah, of course I remembered, I was just checking to see if _you _remembered," Soarin lied, closing the magazine and placing it down on the counter. Braeburn put a hoof to his mouth and did a fake cough which he used to cover up the words: "He's lyin'".

"Well, what are we waiting around here for? Let's go!" Rainbow Dash practically dragged Soarin to the door.

"Whoa, hold your horses, Dash," Soarin ordered the cyan mare, who obediently released him from her grip. He looked over to Braeburn. "Do ya wanna come and watch?" He asked his friend. Braeburn thought for a moment. It was either that or sit around thinking about work. He _could _use a break.

"Sure, why not?" Braeburn shrugged. It sure beat hanging around in the kitchen deciding what flavour of pie to make. Rainbow Dash let out an impatient huff and began hopping up and down.

"_Come on_!" She wailed, almost like a foal. Soarin rolled his eyes and headed out the door.

"Fine, let's go," He sighed, grinning at Rainbow Dash who sprung after him. Braeburn smiled at his two friends before following them, pleased to leave the kitchen again. As they headed out into the training grounds, Braeburn realised for the first time how long it had been since he'd taken a break. Sure, he'd taken a break earlier when Soarin had taken him to the staff room, but that was still stressful. Being surrounded by ponies you didn't know really did make you nervous. But, they were all super friendly and Braeburn was officially thinking of them as friends. He couldn't believe that High Winds, Surprise and Blaze slayed a dragon all on their own. It turns out he was right when Soarin revealed that the dragon was the one who slayed _them. _He suddenly felt the ground vanish from beneath his hooves and he gave an embarrassingly shrill shriek. He discovered that he wasn't going down, but up. Soarin had grabbed him and way flying up through the sky beside Rainbow Dash.

"What are ya doin'?" Braeburn gasped, once he'd gotten over the shock of being airborne.

"I thought you two would like the highest seats in the metaphorical house," Soarin replied, plopping Braeburn down on a fluffy cloud. Braeburn loved the feel of the fuzzy cloud beneath his hooves. It was like standing on cotton candy…that wasn't sticky. Rainbow Dash touched down on the cloud beside him, making it bounce a little. The rainbow maned mare was buzzing with excitement; she was so excited you could practically see the joy wafting around her.

"So, are ya gonna show us this trick of yours?" Braeburn asked his buddy, who was doing some pre-flight stretches.

"Of course I am," Braeburn whispered the next part. "If I kept Dash waiting any longer, she'd probably throw me off this cloud to give me a jump start."

"I heard that," Rainbow Dash alerted them, making Soarin twitch a little. He took off into the sky.

"You ready?" He asked the two ponies he was performing for. Braeburn gave a nod while Rainbow Dash gave him a full on cheer. "I can't hear you!" Soarin cupped a hoof around his ear.

"Just do it already!" Rainbow Dash ordered him, making Soarin chuckle.

"Of course, captain," He said sarcastically. Soarin flew up high into the air until they two observing ponies could barely see him. He then began descending rapidly and as he dove he flew round and round in circles, faster and faster until a tornado formed. It got bigger and bigger and when Soarin finally pulled up, the tornado practically exploded into powerful gusts of wind that sent Braeburn and Rainbow Dash tumbling backwards until they almost fell off the cloud completely. Soarin flapped back up and rested himself on the cloud beside Rainbow Dash.

"So what did ya think?" He asked casually, preening his wings. Rainbow Dash just sat there with an awestruck expression on her face, and for a moment Braeburn feared that she had completely frozen.

"Um…anypony home?" The earth pony asked her, waving a hoof in front of her face. Rainbow Dash suddenly flapped up into the air, giving Braeburn a shock.

"That was SO COOL!" Rainbow cheered, throwing her hooves into the air. Soarin flushed red, despite the fact that he was used to being showered with admiration by his countless fans.

"Yeah, I guess it's pretty cool," Soarin shrugged. Rainbow's jaw dropped.

"Are you serious? That trick was undeniably, unquestionably ultra-awesome!" The pegasus mare complimented Soarin. "I've gotta try it sometime," She added. Soarin gave a small shrug and raised an eyebrow.

"How about right now, Dash?" He asked her. Rainbow Dash gave a small squee and took off. Braeburn chuckled at her behaviour. She was a pretty fun pony to hang out with. She lay with his hooves folded behind his head as he watched her ascend into the sky. He took a deep breath and relished in the feel of the soft cloud on his back, thinking how great it was that he had these two awesome friends to hang out with.

* * *

><p>That night, Rainbow Dash sat on her bed and got to work writing her daily letter to her friends back in Ponyville.<p>

_Hey, everyone!_

_The first drills were today and you'll never believe what we had to do. Fly through hoops BLINDFOLDED! I've never crashed so much in my life, but on the bright side, nopony could see that since we were all blindfolded, so my dignity is still intact._

_I can't say I'm too fond of the wake up calls though. I know what you're thinking: 'Dash, you're just lazy', but believe me, if you woke up to the sound of a bugle so loud it could wake ponies up in Baltimare, you'd hate it, too._

_Soarin finally showed me his trick, which was SO AWESOME and he even let me try it. My first attempt was pretty good…if you consider spinning out of control and crashing into the ground good, that is._

_I also got to perform a Sonic Rainboom in front of all the cadets and you'll never guess what, but Spitfire, the Wonderbolt CAPTAIN said that I was her favourite cadet! _

_I'm gonna go to sleep smiling tonight, that's for sure._

_Yours coolly,_

_Rainbow Dash._

Rainbow Dash rolled the letter up and put it in her saddle bags as usual, so it was ready for her to take to the post office after drills. She heard a yawn and looked over to the other bed to see Spring Song sitting up.

"You still awake, Dash?" She asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm just about to turn in," Rainbow Dash replied, yawning herself. She rested her head on the pillow and stared up at the ceiling. "What do ya think we'll be doing tomorrow?" She asked.

"Beats me," Spring Song shrugged, burying herself deeper in her bed sheets. "I'm fine with anything as long as there aren't any blindfolds involved."

"True dat," Rainbow Dash smirked, closing her eyes. She reached over to her lamp and rumbled for the switch to turn it off. "Night, Spring Song," Dash murmured through another yawn.

"Night Dash," Spring Song answered, before the two of them fell into dreams of tricks, applauding audiences and absolutely no blindfolds.


	5. Friendship Flu

"C'mon, it's almost 12:30," Spring Song jumped up from her seat in the cafeteria and stood by the door, waiting for Rainbow Dash to add her plate to the growing pile of dirty crockery and cutlery. Rainbow Dash grumbled. Drills had been tough this morning. Spitfire had made them do 100 wing-ups with a sandbag on their backs. Dash had struggled through but was one of the only cadets to do 100 wing-ups. She hoped that whatever they were going to do now was less exhausting.

"Hey, Rainbow Dash, good luck," Braeburn called to her from behind the kitchen counter. Rainbow gave him a bright smile.

"Won't need it!" She called back. She went out the door and walked beside Spring Song, who looked a little astounded.

"Holy Celestia, do you _know _him?" She gasped. Rainbow Dash tilted her head, baffled at her roommate's behaviour.

"Braeburn? Yeah, a little…She trailed off. "What's wrong with him?" Spring Song obviously had some negative feelings towards Braeburn. "Is it because he's an Earth Pony?"

"No…he's just so _weird. _And he talks like a hillbilly or something," Spring Song replied. Rainbow Dash had to resist the urge to give Spring Song a stern lecture about how you shouldn't stereotype ponies like that, but then she'd sound like an egghead. Lecturing was Twilight's thing, not Rainbow's. The two of them joined the end of the line, where Rainbow Dash continued pondering Spring Song.

After Rainbow Dash had failed at Soarin's trick yesterday the two of them and Braeburn had just sat around talking. They'd gotten to know eachother better and just had an awesome time together. Braeburn made a lot of jokes that Rainbow and Soarin laughed at and he'd told them about how much he liked living in Cloudsdale. Rainbow Dash just couldn't see how anypony couldn't like him. He was just so NICE!

Rainbow Dash suddenly heard the sound of a whistle and the cadets around her took off into the air. Rainbow gasped when she realised that she hadn't heard what she was meant to do. She flapped into the air and caught up to Paradise.

"What are we supposed to be doing?" She asked.

"Just some cloud busting. I bet the Wonderbolts just brought us here to do chores," The green mare replied, saying the word 'chores' the same way you'd say 'diarrhoea'.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. Today she was seeing a side of some of her new friends that she hadn't seen before. She was just glad that they weren't doing any more wing-ups.

Dash got to work busting clouds, trying to stay as focused as she possibly could. She was still befuddled by Spring Song's actions. What was so weird about Earth Pony's on clouds. All of this was just so messed up.

* * *

><p>Soarin took a huge bite of his hayburger, the deliciousness of the snack exploding across his tongue as he chewed. He was interrupted from his lunch by a hoof prodding his shoulder.<p>

"_What?" _Soarin asked with a mouthful of burger. Braeburn glowered down at him, irritated.

"What're ya eatin'?" The earth pony asked. Soarin shifted his eyes to the side, catching sight of the large Hayburger logo on the brown paper bag his meal had come in.

"Celestia's royal cheese," Soarin replied sarcastically. Braeburn raised an eyebrow.

"You're sittin' in a _kitchen, _Soarin, and ya actually went out to buy a hayburger when ya could've come here and got free lunch from me," The Appaloosan said to his friend.

"Well…I like hayburgers," Was all Soarin said. Braeburn sneered down at him.

"But it's really unhealthy!" He argued. "Besides, Ah would've given ya pie," He tried to tempt the pegasus stallion.

"I've got pie. You can get it half price whenever you order a mega carrot cola," Soarin held up a tall paper cup the height of his head in one hoof and a slice of blueberry pie in the other. Braeburn stomped a hoof on the floor.

"Is this a crazy way of sayin' that ya don't like mah cookin?" he asked, making Soarin's eyes bulge out of his head. He loved Braeburn's cooking, especially his pies.

"Of course not, Brae, why would you think that?" The pale blue stallion said, completely bewildered.

"Because if ya liked mah cookin', ya wouldn't go down to a fast food place to grab a meal," Braeburn was almost shouting now.

"I do like your cooking, Braeburn, don't be ridiculous," Soarin took another bite of his burger, praying that his friend would just go away.

"Tell me the truth, Soarin," Braeburn ordered Soarin with such ferocity that it almost made him jump out of his fur.

"The truth is I like your cooking, now leave me alone," Soarin was beginning to get irritated with his friend.

"Tell me, tell me, TELL ME!" Braeburn was practically oozing frustration. Soarin got up from his chair. He decided he was going to tell Braeburn exactly what he thought.

"FINE! If you really want to know…" Soarin knew exactly what he was going to say and it was going to _hurt. _"You cook too much healthy food. Ponies don't get satisfied by eating an assortment of lettuces and mashed potato. You cook your food for too long, so it's usually way too crunchy and do you wanna know something?"

Braeburn slitted his eyes so that they were almost closed.

"I've never liked your apple strudel!" Soarin revealed, rising to his full height.

Braeburn's face softened and his eyes grew wider at this revelation.

"Never!" Soarin slammed a hoof into the ground, making a few of the pots and pans around them shake. Braeburn took off the apron he was wearing and threw it in Soarin's face.

"Ya know what, if ya don't appreciate mah cookin', Ah'll go and find somepony who does!"

"Where are you going?" Soarin asked Braeburn as the Earth Pony picked up a tray of his muffins.

"To the staff room, where ponies respect me and treat me like a friend," Braeburn stormed out the door.

"What! _I'm _the one who got you this job!" Soarin called after him. The door slammed close and Soarin was left alone. For a few moments Soarin was silent before yelling again.

"Fine, I don't need you. I'm gonna make it on my own!" He declared as if he were in some kind of movie. There was no reply and all Soarin heard was the sound of Braeburn's retreating hoof steps.

"You'll see, YOU'LL ALL SEE!" Soarin stood on his hind legs and raised his hooves into the air for dramatic effect. "As soon as I've finished my hayburger," Soarin sat back down and resumed munching his burger.

* * *

><p>Spitfire paced back and forth outside the nurses office. During the second bunch of drills Fast Clip had collapsed in a coughing fit and he'd been taken to the nurse. Rainbow Dash was waiting with her for reasons unknown to her. The cadet would probably rather hang out with her friends, so why was she here?<p>

"What do you think's wrong with him?" Rainbow Dash piped up, looking concerned.

"Feather Flu," Spitfire sighed, hanging her head. She should have sent Fast Clip home when she'd first seen the signs. Yesterday he'd been coughing too much for it to be normal. She'd suspected Feather Flu right from the beginning, but she'd been too engrossed with the cadets' performances to even acknowledge him.

"Are you okay, ma'am?" Rainbow Dash suddenly appeared beside Spitfire, surprising her. It took the flame maned mare a second to realise that she was sitting down with her head drooped. She hadn't even realised she'd done so and she immediately stood up. She hated it when she showed emotion. She didn't want to show that she was worried about Fast Clip. She was supposed to be a tough, no-nonsense Wonderbolt captain, so showing weaknesses wasn't an option.

"Of course," Spitfire replied, wiping all signs of worry from her features and replacing them with her usual frown. At that moment the nurse emerged from her office, looking a little worried. "How is he?" Spitfire asked her.

"He'll be fine, but he'll have to stay at the hospital for the rest of today and all of tomorrow," The nurse reported.

Spitfire hung her head again, her sunglasses slipping down her nose, so that she had to wrinkle it to get them to stay on. This meant that Whiplash would have to handle the scores _and _schedule tomorrow. That would probably put too much pressure on the stallion.

"What'th up?" Fleetfoot suddenly appeared, confused about all the fuss. Spitfire looked up to address the blue mare.

"Fast Clip's got Feather Flu," The captain grumbled. The nurse returned to her office after that, flicking a hoof as if to say 'You'd better leave, now'.

"That'th awful. Who'th gonna do hith job, now?" Fleetfoot gasped as she, Spitfire and Rainbow Dash walked down the hallway.

"Beats me," Spitfire muttered, staring down at the ground. She felt truly terrible for making Fast Clip work in his condition.

"Well, you could always find a replacement," Rainbow Dash suggested. Spitfire lit up a little. A replacement was perfect.

"That's a good idea, Dash," Spitfire smiled at the cyan mare, whose face began glowing at her idols praise. "I'll ask one of the other Wonderbolts if they wouldn't mind stepping in for Fast Clip tomorrow."

"Hmm…" Spitfire and Rainbow Dash looked over to Fleetfoot, who was deep in thought. You could practically hear the gears turning in her head.

"Something the matter, Fleet?" Spitfire asked her white maned friend, ripping her from her thoughts.

"Oh, um…well, what if the otherth are buthy tomorrow?" Fleetfoot asked. "I know a pony who could thtep in for you. He'th not a Wonderbolt, tho he hath nothing better to do," She suggested with a shrug. Spitfire had to admit, she'd hate to give the other Wonderbolts another job to do. Fleetfoot's idea was actually pretty good.

"Um…sure, okay, Fleet. Who is this guy, anyway?" Spitfire asked. She wanted to make sure she wasn't giving the job to a complete stranger. Fleetfoot grinned as she spoke his name.

"Braeburn, Thoarin's friend from Appalootha."

"Ya mean that Earth Pony that Soarin begged me to give the cook job to?" Spitfire asked, unsure why Fleetfoot would choose this guy to do a pegasus pony's job.

"Yep. He'll do great," Fleetfoot sounded really enthusiastic about all this. Spitfire sighed, knowing that Fleetfoot would keep trying to persuade her until she gave in and let him have the job.

"Sure, he can have the job. Go find him and tell him the details," Spitfire agreed and Fleetfoot gave a little bounce.

"Thank you, Thpitfire!" Fleetfoot began bounding down the hall. Rainbow Dash began following her.

"I'm gonna go, too. I was heading to the kitchen anyway," The rainbow maned mare explained. Spitfire nodded in farewell, before turning and heading to her office.

Hopefully this 'Braeburn' wouldn't let her down.

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash followed Fleetfoot to the kitchen, where Braeburn was pounding a ball of dough. Rainbow had never seen him mad before. The scowl he wore just didn't suit him. He looked up from his work and lit up a little when he saw the two mares.<p>

"Braeburn, what's wrong?" Rainbow Dash asked him. The Earth Pony let out an agitated sigh.

"Nothin' much, Soarin just got on mah nerves earlier," He replied. Fleetfoot whizzed over to his side.

"Well, I've got thome newth that'll turn that frown upthide down," She chirped. Braeburn went over to the sink to wash the dough off his hooves and nodded at Fleetfoot, allowing her to speak.

"I got you a job, Braeburn!" She announced. Braeburn looked confused.

"Um…but Ah already have a job," he stated the obvious, pulling at his apron.

"I know that. But ith jutht a temporary job," Fleetfoot added. Braeburn raised an eyebrow, looking interested. "Jutht for tomorrow, you get to handle the thchedule for drillth."

"That's all Ah have to do? Just look at a timetable?" Braeburn looked amazed at how easy this job was.

"Yep, and you even get paid for it," Fleetfoot added, trying to tempt Braeburn into the job. Rainbow Dash was still confused at Fleetfoot's choice of replacement. Hopefully she'd get an answer soon.

"But…why me, Fleetfoot, why not another Wonderbolt?" Braeburn asked the white maned mare. It was like the stallion could read Rainbow Dash's thoughts.

"I thought you'd be right for the job, that'th all," Fleetfoot shrugged. Braeburn still didn't seem convinced.

"But... Ah thought that there was already somepony in charge of the schedule," He questioned Fleetfoot.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that the thtallion who handled the timetable got the Feather Flu," Fleetfoot replied. Braeburn's eyes popped out of his head.

"That's awful!" He gasped. "Ah hope it doesn't spread," He paused for a moment. "If it'll help then sure, Ah'll take the job," He accepted. Fleetfoot gave a little bounce and lunged at Braeburn, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder. This took Braeburn by surprise and he froze, unsure of what to do in this situation. Rainbow Dash let out a small chuckle at the sight.

"You're awethome, Braeburn. I- I mean- all of the Wonderboltth apprethiate thith a lot," Fleetfoot gushed, squeezing Braeburn, who awkwardly put one front leg around her, seeing this as a friendly thank you. Rainbow Dash almost collapsed with laughter when she saw Fleetfoot turn her head to the side and take a quick whiff of Braeburn's neck. Fleetfoot finally released Braeburn from her grip and skipped out of the room. Rainbow Dash couldn't help but notice that Fleetfoot's wings were now open.

"I'm gonna go tell the captain. You'll be working with her tomorrow," Fleetfoot called over her shoulder as she left the room. Braeburn did a double take.

"Ah hafta work with the captain!" He gasped, suddenly looking scared. He sat down. "Maybe Ah can't do this," He began to reconsider. Rainbow Dash flapped over to his side.

"It's too late to back down now, buddy," She told him, patting him on the back. "You're not scared are ya?"

"Of course not, Dash," Braeburn defended himself. "But working with the captain is a huge responsibility. Ah'm not all that good with any kind of responsibility. Ah almost burned lunch earlier, for Celestia's sake!"

"Don't worry 'bout it. I'll be out there with you, remember. You're gonna love watching me fly," Rainbow Dash encouraged him. Braeburn sighed.

"Alright, Ah'll do it, but only 'cause you'll be there," He agreed. Just then, Soarin came through the kitchen door. Braeburn seemed to forget all about his new job and grabbed some apple pie from his stock. He cut off a slice and began eating it, clearly ignoring Soarin.

"Hey, Soarin," Rainbow Dash greeted him awkwardly, unsure of what to do in this situation.

Afternoon, Rainbow Dash," Soarin nodded at the rainbow maned mare before heading towards a counter on the other side of the room. Rainbow shifted a little in her seat before speaking again.

"Do you wanna join us over here?" She asked. Soarin shook his head.

"I'm fine on my own, thanks," Soarin replied. The chairs in the kitchen were pretty tall, so Soarin was having trouble getting on it. Braeburn cupped a hoof around his mouth and called over to his friend:

"Struggling to get on the chair, are we?" He asked rhetorically. Soarin immediately turned around and shot something back.

"Pretending this isn't our _second _lunch, are we?"

Braeburn sneered over at him before returning to eating his slice of pie. Rainbow Dash shifted a little in her seat. Boy was this awkward.

"Hey, Dash!" Soarin called from the other side of the room. Rainbow Dash groaned before turning to face the pale blue stallion. "Can you ask Braeburn if he would for once share his pie?"

Braeburn grabbed the plate with the pie on it in his mouth and trotted over to Soarin. He put the plate down on the counter, grabbed a slice and smashed it in Soarin's face, rubbing it in a little, too.

"Oh mah, Ah'm so sorry about this, if Ah could stop, Ah would," Braeburn said sarcastically, grinning. Soarin wiped the pie from his eyes and stood up.

"I'm gonna show you how mad I am by my exit walk!" Soarin announced before doing a strained march towards the door. "See my physical anger!" He pushed his way through the door and kicked it with a hind leg so it slammed.

"Strutting like an elderly drum major are we?" Braeburn yelled after him. Rainbow Dash buried her face in her hooves and sighed.

"Stallions."

* * *

><p>Soarin marched down the hallway. Braeburn was so…so…LAME! Ugh! If only there were somepony he could discuss his problems with. Usually, he'd discuss his problems with Braeburn, but he couldn't talk about Braeburn with Braeburn. Suddenly-<p>

"Look out, Thoarin!"

CRASH!

Soarin fell to the floor, weighed down by something heavy. Once he could see straight again, he found that everything was white. Was he dead?

Wait.

No, it was just Fleetfoot's mane. He helped the blue mare to her hooves and dusted himself down; making sure that the tie on his officer's uniform was straight.

"What in Equestria is going on, Fleetfoot?" Soarin asked her as she shook herself.

"I was just looking for Thpitfire." The mare replied. "You theen her?"

"Nope, sorry," Soarin answered her, suddenly becoming curious. "Why are you looking for her?"

"It's a long thtory. Fatht Clip got Feather Flu and we needed to find a replathment for him. Then, I athked Braeburn if he'd thtep in and he agreed, tho I need to tell Thpitfire the good newth," She lisped. Soarin hoped that Braeburn was given super hard chores to do. Then again, the hardest thing Fast Clip ever had to do was hold a clipboard.

"Poor Fast Clip, I'll have to buy him a get well card," Soarin said, feeling sorry for his ill colleague.

"Somepony say my name?" Spitfire appeared at the end of the hallway.

"I did, captain," Fleetfoot saluted.

"News about the cook's response, I presume?" The yellow pegasus guessed. Fleetfoot nodded.

"You're right. He thaid he'd do the job," Fleetfoot revealed. Spitfire breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank Celestia for that," She breathed. "I hope he's good."

"He's brilliant, captain, believe me," Fleetfoot told Spitfire. Spitfire adjusted her shades and turned to go to her office. Soarin felt a little guilty as he heard her words. Braeburn was a brilliant friend.

"I'll take your word for it, Fleetfoot," She called over her shoulder before turning the corner. For a few moments all was silent until Fleetfoot randomly blurted out:

"Braeburn's cologne thmells fantathtic, don't you agree, Thoarin?"

Soarin shifted his eyes, unsure of how to answer a question like that. "I didn't know Braeburn wore cologne."

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash was pretty ticked off. She was meant to hang out with Soarin, but he was off somewhere sulking. So she was stuck in the kitchen with Braeburn, finding what entertainment she could in rolling an apple up and down the counter. Braeburn resumed pounding the ball of dough like it was a boxing bag. Dash had to admit, the earth pony could pack quite a punch. She'd hate to be that dough.<p>

Rainbow's ears pricked up when she heard the door creak open. She turned to see Soarin poking his head through the door. Great, this probably meant another argument. Soarin trotted over to Braeburn, who was still beating the dough into next week…or month.

"Um…Brae, can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked, looking a little shy. Braeburn looked at Soarin for a mere moment before looking away again. This was getting ridiculous. Soarin groaned and turned around, heading for the oven. He got out some flour and other ingredients and started mixing it all together. Rainbow Dash couldn't help but go over and see what he was doing. After a few minutes it became clear what he was doing and Dash had to admit that it was a good plan. She assisted Soarin in rolling out the dough and making shapes with it. When they were done they stood back to admire their work.

"There we go, all done," Soarin said, sounding satisfied. "I know it's not a flying lesson but it's better than nothing," He added. Rainbow Dash patted his shoulder.

"It's alright, we can always do some flying tomorrow," She shrugged. It didn't matter. They had four whole months to fly. One day without training wasn't going to make a difference. Soarin cleared his throat, trying to get Braeburn to come over. The earth pony just ignored him, again. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and flapped over to him, picking him up by his shoulders, earning some squeals of protest from the stallion.

"Rainbow Dash! Put me down right now!" He ordered her, kicking around a little. Of course, Rainbow didn't listen. She just plopped Braeburn down in front of hers and Soarin's work and waited for the magic to happen. Braeburn set his eyes on what they'd made: The words: 'I'm sorry' out of dough. Soarin looked up at Braeburn with puppy dog eyes.

"Pleeeeeaaase?" He squeed. Braeburn looked away, a teasing look in his eye.

"Ah'm not sure…" He smirked. Soarin hopped from hoof to hoof.

"Please, please, please, please, please, please-"

"If Ah say yes, will ya shut up?" Braeburn asked him. Soarin let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank Celestia for that 'cause I wasn't sure how many more times I could say 'please'."

Braeburn hoof bumped Soarin, looking relieved that they were friends again. Rainbow Dash was relieved, too, mostly because she hadn't been sure how much longer she could survive hanging around two bickering stallions.

"I'm happy you're friends again, too," Rainbow smiled. "Now for the love of fudge, can we eat these letters?"

Braeburn eyed Soarin, who revealed his entire plan.

"Well, I put some sugar and raisins in the dough so we could eat the words after I apologised."

"That's a great plan," Braeburn agreed, picking up an 'R' from the table and taking a grateful bite. Soarin helped himself to an 'M' and Rainbow Dash picked up a 'Y'. She hadn't expected there to be any friendship problems while she was at the boot camp, but once again she was wrong. At least she'd have something interesting to write in her letter to her friends.

* * *

><p>"Lemme guess, you're writing another letter to your friends?" Spring Song asked Rainbow Dash from the vanity in their room. Rainbow Dash looked up and nodded since she couldn't speak with the quill in her mouth.<p>

"You're gonna have to tell me about your friends," The pink mare suggested, brushing her mane again. Rainbow Dash smiled at her to show she agreed before resuming writing her letter.

_What's up, everypony?_

_The academy is one of the few places I thought I could encounter friendship problems. Boy was I wrong. Turns out, even stallions bicker from time to time. Soarin and Braeburn encountered some issues today, and I've just realised I have no idea what they were arguing about in the first place. But, they've resolved their problems, so I guess I've been rubbing off on them. All it took was some dough, water and sugar to make a recipe to fix friendships. _

_Yeuch, that's a sappy thing for me to say._

_Oh, yeah, Applejack. Braeburn's gonna help out with drills tomorrow, so another member of your…freakishly large family can see my awesomeness._

_Yours fantastically,_

_Rainbow Dash_

Spring Song sat beside Rainbow Dash on her bed as the cyan mare rolled up her letter and put it in her saddlebag.

"So, can you tell me about your friends now?" She asked hopefully, rocking back and forth. Rainbow Dash let out a chuckle. Man, she had a lot to tell Spring Song about her friends.

"Sure. Well, first there's Twilight Sparkle…"

…**..**

**Endnote: Just to let you know, after this chapter the real plotline begins. Expect some fluff, suspense and a lot more humor. See you next time!**


	6. Problems

DragonZeus1- I'm super glad that you like my story. Also, nice use of the Rainbow Dash quote :D.

**Authors note: Firstly I want to say that if you made it this far, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! *Cyber-cookies* for everyone! I've never been so dedicated to a story before and I appreciate all the positive feedback. As I said at the end of the last chapter: this is where the real story begins. There are two main storylines, which I won't spoil and just to let you know, things start to get a little tense in this chapter. This chapter also introduces a second pairing into the story. I'll give you guys a full explanation at the end because this is turning into another of my really stupid, long rants. Initiating chapter 6!**

…**..**

"WAKE UP!"

"Whooza!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, jolting from her sleep. She shivered, suddenly aware that her blanket wasn't covering her. She was standing up and…wet? She suddenly remembered where she was. She'd woken up to the sound of the bugle and went to have a shower. She must have fallen asleep in there.

"Nice nap?" Spring Song teased her as she came out of the shower and shook herself, spraying water all over the pink mare, making her squeal.

"Very funny," Rainbow Dash said blankly, now completely dry. She'd had hardly any sleep. She'd woken up halfway through the night and discovered that it must have been like 100 degrees in the bedroom. So she'd opened a window to let in some cool air. She'd returned to her bed and gone back to sleep only to wake up a half hour later with a cloud owl on her head; it was terrifying! After she'd sorted the owl situation out she lay awake for the rest of the night.

She brushed her teeth and made her way back to her and Spring Song's room where she put on her cadet uniform and did her morning stretches. She double checked to make sure that her letter to her friends was in her saddlebag, ready for her to post after drills and headed out the door towards Lullaby and Paradise's room. She knocked on the door, nodding her head every time she knocked and waited for one of the mares to open the door.

"Who is it?" Paradise's voice rang out from behind the door.

"It's me!" Rainbow Dash replied, preparing for the door to open. It didn't open; instead Paradise just asked another question.

"Me who?"

"ME! It's Rainbow Dash!" The rainbow maned mare responded, resisting the urge to face hoof.

"How do I know its Rainbow Dash and not a pony doing a voice imitation of Rainbow Dash?" Paradise asked again.

"Huh?" Rainbow couldn't believe how ridiculous Paradise was being. The green mare only made Rainbow Dash even more befuddled by her next sentence.

"You could be a thief or a changeling, or an alien!"

"UGH! Lullaby, open the door!" Rainbow Dash finally ordered. A few seconds later the purple mare pulled the door open and peered out at Rainbow.

"See, I told you it was just Dash," she told Paradise, opening the door wider. "Did ya need something?"

"I was just seeing if you were ready to head outside," Rainbow Dash replied, noticing that Lullaby was already dressed in her cadet's uniform. She let out a groan and nodded her head backwards.

"I'm all set but Paradise is having…difficulties," She replied, looking a little disgruntled. The sound of Paradise grunting was heard and Rainbow Dash poked her head it to see what was going on. She let out a small chuckle when she saw that the green mare was stuck in her cadet's uniform.

"Um…Lullaby, I've forgotten which hole my head goes through," She said, looking at her two friends through one of the sleeves before promptly toppling over. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and assisted Paradise in getting her uniform on. After a few minutes they were finally ready and began to head down the hall. Spring Song was waiting for them by the door with Ray and Sugar Swoop.

"What took so long, we're almost late," Spring Song asked the three of them. Rainbow Dash eyed Paradise, who dipped her head with embarrassment. Fortunately, Rainbow wasn't a snitch.

"We just lost track of time," She fibbed, earning a grateful smile from Paradise. Spring Song just rolled her eyes before leading the way out the door and into the training grounds. Rainbow Dash noticed the sky was packed with clouds, so she wouldn't be surprised if they were assigned to do some cloud-busting. They joined the end of the cue and waited.

"What's that smell?" Rainbow Dash asked as she suddenly scented something sweet on the breeze. She felt Spring Song nudge her so she turned to face her pink furred friend.

"It's just my body spray. It's peppermint," She explained, lifting up one of her wings to take a whiff of the sweet smelling spray. Even Dash had to admit that it smelt pretty good, though she had no intention of using it herself.

"I hope we do something _fun _today," Spring Song sighed, folding her wing back to her body. "I mean, busting clouds is fun and all, but how about a race?" She shrugged. "I'm itching to show everypony how fast I am," She stared straight ahead, probably imagining herself showing off. Rainbow Dash was secretly praying for a race, too. She couldn't wait to whizz past all the other cadets and prove to them that she was Wonderbolt material. She could see it now, she would fly with them one day, she was sure of it. She'd never been so sure about anything in her entire life. Except that she was awesome, but everypony knew that.

For a few more minutes the cadets stood there. What was taking so long?

"My legs are getting stiff," Sugar Swoop complained from a few spaces down the line. He did a few stretches before sitting down on his rump. Spring Song let out a groan from beside Rainbow Dash and slumped lower to the ground.

"I could be asleep right now, where _are_ they?" She practically yelled, making all the ponies in the line stare at her.

"Well…Fast Clip got the Feather Flu, remember, it could be something to do with that," Rainbow Dash suggested, shrugging her shoulders.

"Good point," Ray agreed, nodding. Spring Song sighed and lay flat on the ground. "I just hope they get here soon otherwise I might just go back to our room and take a few winks."

Rainbow Dash let out a sigh and sat down beside her friend. They'd never had to wait this long before.

What _was _taking so long?

…**..**

Braeburn shuffled his hooves to try and get the feeling back into them since he'd been standing still for quite some time. He was waiting outside the captain's room with Whiplash, who had introduced himself quite politely. The pegasus stallion had explained to Braeburn what he had to do, which was just reading what the cadets had to do and handle the roll call list. This had to be the easiest job in Equestria.

But Braeburn was getting a little worried. The captain hadn't shown up yet and he and Whiplash were beginning to become concerned. According to Whiplash, the captain was a very punctual pony, so it was unusual for her to be late.

Braeburn began to panic some more, thinking of what could have happened. Maybe she'd got hurt or lost. No, she wouldn't get lost on her way to work. He was just overthinking things. She'd show up.

For a couple more minutes, Braeburn and Whiplash waited, but nopony came. Braeburn finally let out a sigh and opened his mouth to ask Whiplash if they should send out a search party or something, but before he had a chance to say anything, he heard approaching hoof steps coming from behind him and somepony spoke.

"Sorry I'm late, my alarm didn't go off," She spoke in a raspy voice and she sounded a little frantic, as if she'd been in a hurry, which she probably _had _been. Braeburn turned around to greet the captain.

"That's quite alright, ma'am, it's not your fau-" Braeburn never finished his sentence because his breath was suddenly taken away. His jaw went slack and his eyes bulged out of his head.

The Earth Pony knew that it was rude to stare at ponies, especially mares, but he just couldn't help himself. His mind went completely blank and he froze. He felt his heart thump harder and faster inside his chest and all he could focus on was this vision before him. She was the most beautiful…no-dazzling…no…s_tunning _mare he'd ever seen. She had yellow fur that seemed brighter than the sun, a fiery spiked mane and her cutie mark was a cluster of flames. She wore a captain's uniform with several medals and badges on it and a whistle hung around her neck. Braeburn couldn't see her eyes very well through the sunglasses she was wearing, but they still seemed to pierce right _through _him. She was a little shorter than him, the top of her head only just reaching above his shoulders, but her spiked mane added a little height to her.

"You okay, cowboy?"

Braeburn was snapped from his trance by the captain. She looked a little confused and for the first time Braeburn realised he must have looked like a total idiot, just standing there and staring at her.

"Um…yes, ma'am," Braeburn replied, struggling to get the words out. Whiplash stepped forward to address the mare.

"We'd better get outside. The cadets must be getting restless by now, Captain Spitfire."

"_Spitfire…what a wonderful name," _Braeburn thought, letting out a silent sigh. Spitfire nodded and began leading the two stallions out into the training grounds. Braeburn was shocked when she turned to talk to him.

"So, Whiplash showed you the ropes, right?" She asked him. For a brief moment Braeburn wondered if there was somepony behind him that she was talking to and stupidly looked over his shoulder to check. No, she was definitely talking to him.

"Yep. Ah know exactly what Ah have to do," He confirmed, trying to put on his most confident face. Spitfire gave him a nod and turned back around, which was lucky for Braeburn because she turned just in time to miss the bright red blush that crossed his features.

…**..**

Rainbow Dash was interrupted from her daydream by approaching hoof steps. She sprung back up to her hooves as she heard the familiar commanding tone of Spitfire. All the cadets stood tall and straight as the yellow mare approached them. Rainbow Dash waved to Braeburn, who was following her with Whiplash. He gave her a small wave before returning to following the Wonderbolt captain.

"It's roll call time again, ladies, so hopefully, nopony got lost coming out the door again," Spitfire eyed Paradise, who stared at the floor in shame. "Hey, cowboy, could ya pass me the clipboard?" She called over her shoulder at Braeburn, who jolted up as if he'd just been awoken from hypnosis.

"Pardon?" He asked. Spitfire nodded down at the clipboard, which Braeburn obediently passed to her. Rainbow couldn't help but notice that the earth pony's face turned a shade of red when he passed her the clipboard. He must be really nervous. Spitfire proceeded to call out the names and everypony answered, which Spitfire was relieved to see. She gave the clipboard back to Braeburn, who proceeded to clutch it to his chest. Rainbow Dash felt a stab of pity for him. He was so nervous he needed something to hold. Poor guy.

"Okay, so for the first half of drills you'll be doing cloud busting in pairs," Spitfire announced, pacing back and forth before the line of pegasi. "I don't want any of the whole 'I don't like my partner' boo hoo, you're gonna be paired up and you're gonna like it!"

"Please let me be with Spring Song, Celestia!" Paradise pleaded to the sky. Everypony stared at her. "Did I say that out loud?" She squeaked, at which Bumble nodded. Paradise smiled a nervous smile before looking at the ground again. Spitfire walked over to Whiplash and peered over his shoulder at what was written on his clipboard.

"Okay, Tempest, you'll be with Beau," Spitfire began listing the pairs. "Stargazer, you're with Butternut…Paradise and Sugar Swoop are a pair…Rainbow Dash-"

Rainbow Dash wondered who she'd be paired with.

"-You're with Ray…"

"_What!?" _Spring Song gasped, glaring angrily at Rainbow Dash. The cyan mare shifted her eyes to the side, unsure why Spring Song was ticked with her.

"It's not _my _fault!" She defended herself. Spring Song just looked away with a look that practically screamed 'whatever'."

"…Spring Song and Bumble will be together…"

Rainbow Dash didn't hear the rest of the pairs. She was too busy trying to ignore Spring Song. She could feel the pink mare's cold stare stabbing at her like a knife. What was she meant to do about this situation?

"Now, get going!" Spitfire's harsh voice busted into Rainbow's thoughts and she took off into the sky, meeting up with Ray. The two of them immediately started kicking the clouds to smithereens faster than any other pair. The entire time Rainbow Dash was aware of Springs Song's icy glare on her back and it made it incredibly difficult to focus.

For what seemed like hours they kicked, punched and karate-chopped clouds and at last the sky was clear. Rainbow Dash wasted no time in zooming back down to the ground. She sighed in relief and looked over at Whiplash who was jotting something down on his clipboard. She felt a hoof prod her shoulder and turned to see Paradise with Spring Song standing not too far behind her.

"So, what happened?" The green mare whispered to Rainbow Dash. The cyan mare groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Nothing! We just busted clouds!" She insisted, becoming infuriated with the whole subject. Paradise gave her a smile and turned to Spring Song.

"See? I told you nothing happened," She told her pink furred friend. "Now you don't have to be mad at her."

"Huh?" Rainbow Dash whispered to herself. Spring Song was mad at her? She hadn't intended for that to happen. She was learning that Spring Song tended to be a little dramatic at times.

"Okay, nice work up there, newbies!" Spitfire congratulated the cadets. "I'm sure you'll all be pleased to hear that after lunch you'll all be racing."

"Finally!" Sugar Swoop exclaimed, hoof bumping Ray.

"Get outta here!" Spitfire dismissed the cadets and they all began flocking to the mess hall. Rainbow Dash flapped over to Braeburn.

"So…how's work?" She asked him. Braeburn hadn't seemed to see her come over and jumped as she spoke, though he smiled when he saw it was her.

"Oh, it's…great," He replied. Rainbow Dash had expected him to rant about all his worries since he'd seemed so nervous earlier.

"What do you have to do besides look at a clipboard?" She asked, wondering how he and Fast Clip could handle such an unchallenging job.

"Nothin' else," Braeburn sighed. "Ah'm glad there's decent pay, though."

"Hey, cowboy!"

Rainbow Dash and Braeburn turned to see Spitfire and Whiplash heading towards them.

"You can go hit the mess hall now," She informed him before trotting right past him. Braeburn opened his mouth so speak but no words came out, so instead he just nodded rapidly. They watched as Spitfire headed to her office and Whiplash went to the mess hall.

"Um…where's she goin'?" Braeburn asked Rainbow Dash, nodding at Spitfire.

"She always eats in her office," Rainbow Dash replied, beginning to head to the mess hall. Braeburn walked beside her, still staring after the Wonderbolt captain until she disappeared through the door, and even after she'd vanished from sight he kept staring.

"Watch out for that-"

"WHOA!" Braeburn tumbled over and landed flat on his face.

"-loose cloud," Rainbow Dash finished before helping the Earth Pony to his hooves. "Are you okay?" Dash asked him, concerned about his behaviour.

"Um…yeah, of course," He insisted, before looking straight ahead and picking up the pace. The rainbow maned mare pushed the mess hall door open and headed to the kitchen with Braeburn. As they went in they saw Soarin and Fleetfoot frantically rushing around, putting things in ovens and rolling out dough.

"What's goin' on!?" Braeburn exclaimed, noticing the layer of flour on the floor. Soarin stopped putting icing sugar on a lopsided apple cake long enough to answer his friend.

"Well, we decided to be the replacement cooks," He said quickly before proceeding to place the cake on the counter. Fleetfoot suddenly skidded past Rainbow Dash to stand beside Braeburn.

"How did your job go?" She asked him, her eyes sparkling with interest. Braeburn trotted over to a counter and pulled up a chair so he could sit at it.

"Brilliant," He replied, getting a distant look in his eyes. Fleetfoot grabbed a plate of apple fritters and placed it in front of Braeburn.

"Here, Braeburn, have thome thelebration lunch," She smiled, grabbing one of the fritters for herself. Braeburn shook his head and pushed the plate towards the blue furred mare.

"No thanks, Fleetfoot, Ah'm not hungry," He said, before returning to staring at the wall. Rainbow Dash headed over to Soarin, who was pouring apple juice into plastic cups.

"Hey, Soarin, what're we gonna do after drills?" She interrogated him. Soarin poured the last of the juice into the cups before replying.

"I thought I could teach you that trick you tried to do the other day…ya know, when you crashed?" He suggested. Rainbow Dash groaned, trying not to think too much about the crash.

"That sounds great," Rainbow Dash would be relieved to finally do that trick.

"Hey Thoarin, have the cadet'th all got lunch, yet?" Fleetfoot asked him from her seat beside Braeburn. Soarin looked over the counter to see and turned back to Fleetfoot with a relieved look on his face.

"Yep, our work here is done," The pale blue stallion sighed. He took off his apron and threw it at Braeburn, who didn't even acknowledge the impact. Soarin sat on the other side of Braeburn and Rainbow Dash sat at the other side. For the rest of lunch the four of them talked…well, three of them talked while Braeburn just stared at the wall. Maybe there was an interesting stain on it. .Rainbow Dash examined the wall closer…nope, nothing.

"Rainbow Dash!" Rainbow looked over her shoulder to see Lullaby and Sugar Swoop at the counter. "C'mon, we've got one minute to get outside!" Lullaby told the cyan mare. She quickly gobbled down an apple fritter and prodded Braeburn, who was promptly snapped from his daze.

"What?" He asked her.

"We need to get back outside!" Rainbow Dash reported. At this, the Earth Pony leapt up from his chair, surprising Fleetfoot and Soarin at his sudden movement. Braeburn reached under his cowboy hat and pulled out the clipboard that he had placed under there for safe keeping and trotted out the door. Rainbow turned to the two Wonderbolts.

"Was that weird, or is it just me?" She asked them.

"It's not you," The other two said in unison. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and followed Braeburn outside. Rainbow Dash joined the end of the line beside Paradise and Braeburn went to stand beside Whiplash. Sugar Swoop, Ray and Tempest were the last cadets outside. Spring Song waved at Ray, though he paid no attention to her. Rainbow Dash actually felt a little sorry for the pink mare.

"Alright, newbies, it's race time!" Spitfire announced, walking onto the scene in the half-march-half-strut of hers. The cadets erupted into cheering and Rainbow Dash heard Paradise whisper to her.

"This is gonna be so much fun…but Spring Song is definitely gonna win. She always wins when she races against me and Ray."

"Well…I usually come pretty close," Ray bragged from Rainbow Dash's other side. Spring Song had a smug look on her face. The cadets were let to a circular race track for them to fly around.

"The rules are simple. Just fly 'round the track forty times," Spitfire told them as they all lined up at the starting line

"_Time to show 'em my stuff!" _Rainbow Dash thought, stretching out her wings and flapping them a couple of times to warm them up.

"3…"

Spring Song gave Rainbow Dash a competitive smile, which she returned.

"…2…"

Rainbow Dash braced herself for take-off, feeling the adrenaline begin to pump through her veins.

"…1…"

The cadets prepared to flap their wings.

TOOOOOT!

Spitfire blew her whistle and the pegasi set off, Rainbow Dash immediately taking the lead. This was easy!

After thirty laps, Rainbow Dash was still in the lead, Sugar Swoop in second place and Spring Song in third.

This was _too _easy.

Suddenly without warning, a pink blur caught up to Rainbow Dash. The cyan mare turned her head to the side, shocked to see that Spring Song had caught up to her. This was crazy. She had been in third a few second before. Rainbow Dash just shook off all her thoughts and flapped her wings harder.

She was in the lead.

No, Spring Song was.

No, it was Rainbow Dash.

Holy Celestia, Spring Song was pretty fast. Paradise hadn't been lying when she'd said that Spring Song was super swift.

One lap left.

The two leading mares gave it their all as the finish line came into view. Rainbow Dash poured the last of her strength into her flight as she finally pulled ahead of Spring Song, crossing the finish line in first place.

"Rainbow Dash wins!" Spitfire announced. Braeburn rushed over to congratulate the rainbow maned pegasus along with several of the other cadets.

"You were awesome, Rainbow Dash!" Stains exclaimed, slapping Dash on the back.

"Yeah, you even beat Spring Song," Paradise chirped. "I didn't think it could be done!"

After receiving several hoof bumps and slaps on the back, she turned to Spring Song and got a fright. If looks could kill, Rainbow Dash would be a crumpled heap of feathers on the floor.

Spring Song glared at Rainbow Dash with a stare that could turn even Medusa to stone. Everything about the pink mare screamed one thing:

_I will destroy you!_

…**..**

Rainbow Dash sat perched on the cloud beside Braeburn while Soarin busted a few clouds out of the sky. She was still baffled about the whole Spring Song situation. Why was she so mad at her? It was just a stupid race!

"Dash!"

"Huh?" Rainbow Dash sat upright as Soarin's voice interrupted her thoughts. The pale blue stallion flapped in front of her with a confused expression on his face.

"Why are my two friends so…weird today?" He asked Rainbow. "You're constantly drifting into your own thoughts and Braeburn's staring at some invisible thing every ten _seconds_!"

Rainbow Dash looked over at the Appaloosan stallion. It was true. Ever since he's sat down on the cloud he'd been staring down, saying nothing. It just didn't seem right. He hadn't seemed normal all day!

"Hey, Braeburn, can I talk to you for a second?" Rainbow Dash asked him. The Earth Pony just kept staring at the cloud. Rainbow Dash scooted a little closer and yelled in his ear.

"HEY! EQUESTRIA TO BRAEBURN! DO YOU COPY?" She bellowed, making the stallion jump a whole five feet into the air.

"Hey, what're ya doin'?" Braeburn asked, rubbing his ear. Soarin landed on Braeburn's other side.

"What's going on with you, buddy?" he asked his friend. "We're your friends, you can tell us anything."

"Well…" Braeburn hesitated, looking down at the cloud again. Soarin and Rainbow Dash leaned in closer to him, but that just made him nervous.

"Ah…um…" He stuttered, turning bright red.

"Go on…" Soarin encouraged Braeburn, who suddenly sat upright.

"Oh, Ah just remembered that Ah have to go to the staff room. Surprise said she had another story to tell me," He said. Soarin raised an eyebrow, not quite convinced.

"Really?" He questioned the Earth Pony, who nodded.

"Eeyup, Ah'd better get goin'," Braeburn jumped off the cloud, falling twenty feet before landing on the soft, fluffy cloud. It was kinda like jumping on cotton candy, only less sticky.

"This isn't over!" Soarin called after him as he swiftly retreated into the academy. He turned to Rainbow Dash. "Something's definitely wrong with him, Dash. I mean, after drills ended he came in for a snack and put apple juice on a slice of bread and jam in a cup!"

"Yeah…I wonder what happened to him." Rainbow Dash replied, putting a hoof to her chin in thought, growing more curious by the moment. Soarin rolled his eyes and took off.

"C'mon, forget him. We'll probe him some more later. For now, let's do this trick!" The stallion flew higher into the air and Dash immediately flew after him, forgetting all about Braeburn. The two pegasi flew higher and higher until finally they halted just when the air began to get thin.

"So what do we do, _captain_?" Rainbow Dash asked Soarin, putting extra emphasis on 'captain' to tease him. Soarin let out a chuckle before explaining.

"Okay, Dash, I want you to just fly in a circle," He commanded her. Rainbow Dash instantly began flying in a circular pattern.

"Great. Now dip down a little."

Rainbow Dash did as she was told, tilting her body forward so she began descending from the sky.

"Just keep doing that!" Soarin ordered as Rainbow sped up, going round faster and faster as she got lower in the sky. A tornado was beginning to form around her, getting bigger as she sped up. Then…

"PULL UP NOW!" Soarin yelled down to her.

Rainbow flew up once again and the tornado exploded into violent bursts of wind that blew all the surrounding clouds away. Rainbow Dash touched back down on the cloudy ground outside the academy and Soarin landed beside her a few seconds later.

"Holy Celestia, even _I _haven't been able to do that trick like that before," He admitted, looking a little ashamed that he'd been outshined at his out trick. Rainbow Dash, however felt pride oozing out of her.

"That was so FUN!" She cheered, flapping into the air. "You're like the best mentor EVER!"

"I try my best," Soarin blushed, rubbing the back of his head. "C'mon, we'd better get back inside. I'm gonna try and get answers from Braeburn."

"Well, I'm gonna go find Spring Song," Rainbow Dash decided, beginning to head back inside, determined to fix things between the two of them.

…**..**

Rainbow Dash stared down at the blank piece of paper on the bedside table. She hadn't been able to find Spring Song. She'd knocked on all her friends' doors and they'd all claimed that they hadn't seen her. This was so irritating. All she wanted to do was make amends. She decided to just write the letter so she could turn in early.

_What's up, everyone?_

_I've finally managed to do that cool trick. You remember… when I crashed. I really don't want to think about that, though. Anyways, I'm having a little trouble with one of the other pegasi here, Spring Song. She got a little mad at me earlier when I beat her in a race. _

_What a drama queen._

_So, I really want to apologise to her for…whatever it is I need to apologise for but I just can't find her. I'm sure she's avoiding me. All of this is making me exhausted. I'm just gonna go to sleep. I'll write to you tomorrow to give you guys an update on the whole Spring Song thing._

_Yours tiredly,_

_Rainbow Dash._

She put the letter in her bag and crawled into bed, feeling a little lonely. She'd been so used to having Spring Song in the room with her when she went to sleep. She hated being all alone. She sighed and huddled further into the bed, trying to block out all her worries. She'd sort this out tomorrow and then she wouldn't have to deal with this anymore.

"Good night-" She began to say before realising her roommate wasn't there. She let out a groan before closing her eyes and falling into a dreamless sleep.

…**..**

**Endnote: What will happen next?**

**Will Spring Song and Rainbow Dash make amends?**

**Read the next chapter and find out!**

**Anyways, before I start getting crazy reviews saying: 'Braeburn and Spitfire? Are you INSANE!?' I would like to say that those two are my OTP. Please don't call me crazy. It's not all that strange. I've read a few fanfics about those two and they have two fanclubs on DeviantART. I bet that I can get at least one of you to ship these two y the time this story ends.**

**Stay tuned for chapter 7!**


	7. Racing Rainbow

Rainbow Dash stared straight ahead at the wall as she sat at one of the counters in the kitchen. Her first week at the academy was almost over and it had been _crazy_! She'd started off as friends with a whole bunch of ponies and now she'd lost two of them.

Spring Song hadn't spoken to Rainbow Dash since the race, no matter how much Rainbow Das tried to apologise. Paradise didn't seem mad at Rainbow Dash at all, but when she had tried to get Paradise to pass a message on to Spring Song she'd said "I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash, Spring Song will be mad at me if I talk to you."

This was ridiculous!

Rainbow Dash had this terrible feeling that Spring Song was planning something to get back at her. She could feel it coming at her like an approaching thunderstorm. So for the last couple of days she'd hung out with Lullaby and Sugar Swoop and she'd even spent some time with Free Fall, Bumble and Butternut.

Of course, the best time of day was after drills when she would head to the post office then go hang out with Soarin. He'd been helping her with one of the Wonderbolt's classic moves, when they created a firework like explosion.

Lunch was almost over and she was dreading heading back outside to face Spring Song again. Fast Clip was back on the job, so Braeburn was back to cooking. Right now, he was making some more of those nice muffins of his. She wished he'd hurry up and finihsh them because she could use something sugary to snack on.

"Rainbow Dash, are you in there?"

Rainbow Dash turned her head to the side and looked out the corner of her eye, seeing Stargazer standing at the door.

"You okay?" She asked in that elegant almost hippie-like voice of hers. Rainbow Dash erased the worry from her face and stood up.

"Of course I'm fine," She insisted, heading out the door with her. Stargazer eyed her cautiously before flapping a few feet into the air and waving her hooves above Rainbow Dash's head.

"What the- what are ya doing?" Rainbow Dash, confused and, to be honest, a little freaked out at the mare.

"I'm just cleansing your aura," She replied. "You seem a little stressed."

"Leave my aura alone!" Rainbow Dash snapped, stepping back. Stargazer shrugged and fluttered to the door with Dash following. She stepped outside and immediately got whipped by warm wind. As usual, she joined the end of the line and turned to her side, where Spring Song was standing, talking to Paradise.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" Rainbow Dash asked. Spring Song just ignored her.

"Did you hear something, Paradise?" She asked her friend, who nodded.

"Yeah, Rainbow Dash just said-" the green mare stopped talking as Spring Song gave her a menacing glare. "I mean…nope, I didn't hear a thing."

"UGH! Spring Song, for the thousandth time, I'm sorry about the race. I didn't mean to make you mad!" Rainbow Dash attempted once again to apologise. Spring Song nonchalantly looked around.

"Wow, I just can't believe how _quiet _everything is, today," She said, and Paradise giggled. Stargazer, who was beside Rainbow Dash stayed silent, saying nothing in Rainbow Dash's defence.

"Oh, I get it," Rainbow Dash thought of something else. "Is this about the pairs? If that's it, then you've got nothing to worry about. I don't like Ray," She tried again; though Spring Song ignored her entirely this time. Rainbow just turned away. For a while she just imagined herself hanging out with Soarin all day. What would happen if she just left now, leaving behind the other cadets? She could find Soarin and the two of them would fly all day together.

"Hey, Rainbow Dash, come over here!"

Rainbow looked over to the speaker. Sugar Swoop, Ray and Tempest were waving he rover to them. She hesitant approached them, wondering what they wanted.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" The cyan mare greeted the three stallions. Tempest was the first to speak.

"Just wanted to let you know, we thought you were AWESOME in the race yesterday," He complimented her. Rainbow Dash was about to agree when Sugar Swoop cut her off.

"Just before curfew, me, Tempest and Ray were gonna have a race out here and we were wondering if you wanted to join us," He proposed. Rainbow Dash thought it over. She'd have time to race with them after her lesson with Soarin.

"You've got yourself a deal!" Rainbow Dash agreed putting on her most determined face. She couldn't wait to leave those three in the dust.

"Sweet!" Ray exclaimed, jumping for joy.

"See ya later, Dash," Sugar Swoop said as she hoof-bumped each of them. She returned to her spot in line, feeling satisfied.

"Hey!"

Rainbow Dash looked left to see Spring Song, looking both curious and irritated at the same time.

"What did they say to you?" The moody pink pegasus asked Rainbow. "What were you talking about?"

Rainbow Dash smirked and poked Stargazer's shoulder. The charcoal coloured mare turned around to face her friend.

"Yes, Rainbow Dash?" She asked.

"Can you believe how quiet it is, today? It's like there's nopony here at all," Rainbow Dash grinned. Stargazer put a hoof to her mouth and giggled. Spring Song's jaw dropped open while Paradise looked at the scene, obviously having no idea what was happening. Spring Song marched to the other end of the line.

"Hey, wait for me!" Paradise followed Spring Song in the same way a dog would follow its owner.

"So, what were you talking about?" Stargazer asked Dash, still giggling a little.

"I was just invited to a race before curfew," Rainbow Dash shrugged. Stargazer looked excited at this.

"That sounds like fun. Maybe I could come and watch?" She suggested, brushing a lock of her mane from her eyes. Rainbow Dash noticed that her white mane fell into her eyes a lot.

"Yeah, every race needs an audience," Rainbow agreed, liking the sound of this idea.

"Excellent!" Stargazer chirped. Rainbow Dash gave a little smile. Maybe today wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

><p>Soarin lounged on the couch in the staff room, a cup of coffee in one hoof, a new issue of <em>'SUP <em>in the other hoof. The staff room was surprisingly empty. Fire Streak and Lightning Streak were the only other ponies there. They were talking about something on the other side of the room. It was rare that Soarin had enough room on the couch to fully stretch out and rest his head on one of the arms and his back hooves on the other.

This was the life.

"SOARIN!"

The Wonderbolt stallion jolted up, his coffee flying into the air. He quickly held out his cup and caught the brown drink in it. Phew.

Rainbow Dash stood at the door, looking a little sheepish. Soarin sighed and put his coffee down.

"Haven't you heard of knocking?" He asked her, putting his magazine back down on the table beside the couch

"Sorry Soarin, but this is important!" Rainbow Dash insisted, hopping from hoof to hoof.

"_It'd better be," _Soarin thought grumpily, getting up and walking to the door. "What is it, Dash?"

"There's this race before curfew and I really, really, REALLY want you to come see it!" She smiled widely at Soarin. This was a bit of a problem.

"I wish I could, Rainbow, but there's a Wonderbolts airshow tonight. I've gotta be there," He explained, a little disappointed in himself for not telling her.

"Wait, so does this mean…" Rainbow trailed off.

"Sorry, Dash. No training today," Soarin felt ashamed of himself, allowing his head to droop a little.

"But I promised the others that you'd be there. If you don't come they'll think I'm a liar!" Rainbow Dash pleaded, making puppy dog eyes. Soarin tried not to fall victim to those adorable, pleading eyes, but it was becoming harder and harder to as the moments past.

"Rainbow, the other cadets aren't gonna hold anything against you just because I couldn't make it to your race," He tried to sway her. She was a determined mare, he'd give her that.

"Some of them will," Rainbow Dash muttered, so quietly that Soarin barely heard her.

"Dash, is something wrong. Is there somepony bothering you? If there is, I'll knock 'em into next week," He told her, trying to make a fierce pose but failing miserably. Rainbow let out a chuckle.

"Nothing's wrong! The others are all being really nice to me…" She trailed off after that but resumed her speech with more determination than ever. "But you HAVE to come and watch me! I promise I'll never ask you to do anything for me ever again!"

Soarin raised an eyebrow.

"Well…I was gonna ask you If you could teach me a Double Buccaneer Blaze…and a Thunder Clap Flip, but apart from THAT I'll never ask you for anything again!" She got down on her hooves and stuck out her bottom lip. Soarin rolled his eyes and grunted, knowing that he had to give in.

"Alright, I'll ask Wave Chill to go to the air show instead of me. I'll come."

"YESYESYESYESYES!" Rainbow Dash cheered bouncing around Soarin so many times that he became pretty dizzy. "Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!" She wrapped her hooves around his neck and squeezed him tightly, before rocketing out of the room repeating: 'ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!'

"Heh…is that a blush, Soarin?" Fire Streak suddenly asked Soarin, making the stallion jump with surprise. He put a hoof to his cheek

"No, of course not, it's just allergies," He lied, heading out the door to find Wave Chill, still able to hear the twins laughing at him as he retreated.

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash was surprised to see that all of the cadets had come to see the race. She had only expected a quarter of them to show up; she must be even more awesome that she thought. It was pretty windy out here and she grumbled as a lock of her mane blew into her eyes, <em>again. <em>This must be how Stargazer felt permanently.

"_Where _in Celestia's name is Spring Song?" Sugar Swoop grunted, becoming increasingly impatient. Rainbow Dash's ear pricked up at this.

"Wait? Why are we waiting for her?" Rainbow Dash asked the stallions. Tempest flapped over to explain.

"She wants to race, too. Who are we to turn down the two fastest cadets?"

Rainbow Dash felt her stomach lurch. Spring song was going to be there, too. Great…just great.

As the last syllable escaped Tempest's mouth, Spring Song appeared, striding coolly over to them, Paradise at her side, blow-drying her pink friend's wings.

"Remember, Paradise, if one feather is out of place, you're dead," Spring Song said to the green mare, who shook a little.

"Yes, Spring Song," Paradise murmured. Rainbow Dash looked over her shoulder to see Soarin standing with the watching cadets with Braeburn standing beside him, waving at her. Rainbow Dash eagerly waved back at them, feeling her spirits lift.

"Can we get started, now?" She asked the others.

"Hold up!" The five racing pegasi looked over to see Stargazer, Beau, Smart Set and Stains approaching them.

"We wanna race, too!" Beau chirped enthusiastically. Rainbow saw Spring Song nudge Paradise.

"More ponies to see me win," She whispered to her friend, who nodded. Rainbow Dash wondered how Paradise could stay so loyal to Spring Song.

"Yeah, you guys can race. The more the merrier!" Sugar Swoop agreed. Tempest began explaining the route.

"You start here. Then you fly straight until you get to the cloud pillars," The orange stallion pointed a hoof at the tall pillars of cloud that were used to improve turning techniques. "You weave around them and then fly past the Dizzitron. You then fly through the hoops and go through those storm clouds…" Rainbow Dash looked up warily at the large thunderclouds that had gathered in the sky just beyond the hoops. It didn't look safe. "…then you'll fly down to the path and after that it's a straight shoot to the end. Got that?" Tempest finished explaining.

"Yep," Rainbow Dash replied, sure that she'd remembered everything.

"The let's race!" Tempest declared, unfolding his wings and heading to the start line, which was just a line of sticky string that Lullaby had loaned Sugar Swoop. The other racers joined him at the start, while the others cadets stood at the side-lines cheering for their favourite. Rainbow smiled when she heard several ponies, including Soarin and Braeburn calling her name. Spring Song stood beside Rainbow Dash.

"Get ready to eat my dust," She hissed out the corner of her mouth. Rainbow tried to ignore her. She had to be the better pony here. She wasn't gonna let Spring Song distract her from racing. She looked over to the pink mare.

"Good luck, Spring Song," She smiled, making Spring Song's jaw drop. She obviously hadn't been expecting Dash to say that. Lullaby stood at the side of the 'racetrack' holding a flag.

"Ready…" the purple mare began raising the flag.

Rainbow Dash locked eyes with Spring Song, each of them glaring daggers at each other.

"Set…"

Dash looked straight ahead, unfolding her wings and leaning forward, ready to begin the race.

"GO!"

The nine cadets zoomed along the track, weaving in and out of each other, fighting to get into first place. Rainbow Dash reckoned that they were flying faster since they weren't under as much pressure as they were in the race the other day.

Rainbow Dash was in second place, thanks to Stains bumping into her and breaking her focus. Tempest was in front and Spring Song was close behind Rainbow. They were approaching the cloud pillars and Rainbow Dash braced herself to begin weaving her way around them. She got through them without much trouble, though her wing brushed the last one, making her swerve a little. Thankfully, she recovered pretty smoothly. She looked behind her to see Smart Set crash into one of the pillars and plummet to the ground. Luckily, he landed in a pretty soft patch of cloud and got up again, deciding to quit the race.

Rainbow Dash took first place as they flew around the Dizzitron. Stains was unfortunate enough to crash into it while waving to the observing cadets. Rainbow cringed as she heard the mare make contact with the machine.

Before she knew it, Rainbow Dash had successfully made her way through the hoops, cheering and whooping for herself. Spring Song, who was neck and neck with Stargazer, let out a groan, seeing Rainbow Dash so pleased with herself. The pink mare leaned left, knocking into Stargazer and bending her wing at a painful angle. The black mare let out a shriek and tumbled out of the sky. Rainbow Dash wanted to slap Spring Song so badly. Stargazer recovered from her fall and re-joined the race, though she was now several spots behind.

"Sorry!" Spring Song grinned back at Stargazer sweetly, making Rainbow Dash even angrier. She only got more irritated when the pink mare picked up speed to fly beside her. They crashed against each other, both not wanting their opponent to take first place.

"Just give up, already!" Spring Song snapped at Dash, who slitted her eyes to look threatening.

"No way!" Rainbow declared flapping her wings even harder, flying into the storm clouds. Flying through it was even harder than she imagined. She'd never flown through such strong wind. The cadets struggled as they were blown this way and that, upside down and twirled around. Rainbow felt relief rush through her as she saw that she was almost out of the clouds.

"Horseapples!" Sugar Swoop cursed as he was flung out of the storm clouds. Spring Song pushed herself past Rainbow Dash and took first place, blowing a raspberry at Dash as she past her. With one final burst of effort, Rainbow burst from the storm clouds and began flying right behind Spring Song. They rocketed downwards together; Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth as she noticed that Spring Song wasn't budging.

They began flying straight, Rainbow Dash feeling the stone path brush her hooves. Unfortunately for Beau, she flew down to fast and pulled up to late, going out of control and tumbling off the track. Rainbow Dash felt her blood boil as she heard Spring Song laugh at Beau's mistake.

Rainbow's heart was thumping so fast with determination that she thought it would run out of power and stop. She had to win, she just HAD to, otherwise Spring Song would never stop teasing her for it.

The two of them were getting closer to the finish line. Rainbow Dash put the last of her energy into the final stretch. The cheers of the audience got louder and louder until the volume was almost unbearable. And then- they crossed the finish line.

Together.

"It's a draw!" Lullaby announced. The cadets all rushed forward to congratulate the two winners.

"Rainbow Dash! Spring Song!" They cheered for them, jumping around them like they were celebrities

"Huh!? But…I'm sure I beat her!" Spring Song babbled, looking appalled at herself. Rainbow Dash was a little ticked, too. Even though she hadn't lost, it didn't feel like she'd won either. She had to share first place with somepony else, and that didn't feel as good as having all the glory to herself.

"Nice job!" Ray congratulated the two mares, hoof bumping both of them. Spring Song still wasn't satisfied.

"Can't we have a rematch?" She asked, putting on a pouty face that made Rainbow Dash a little sick.

"No can do, Spring Song. It's almost curfew. Maybe some other day?" Tempest replied.

"Ugh!" Spring Song turned to Paradise. "Why did it have to be a draw? And why with Rainbow Dash?" She complained.

"Spring Song, it's just a race, and joint first is better than last," Rainbow Dash tried to perk up the pink mare.

"Whatever," Spring Song grumbled, looking away. "This is war!" She hissed, making Rainbow Dash's blood chill. She didn't like the sound of that. Smart Set came up to Rainbow and put a hoof on her shoulder.

"Ignore her, Rainbow, you both did great," He smiled at her. Rainbow Dash cheered up a little at that. She was about to say thanks but before she could all the cadets began swarming around Rainbow and Spring Song and babbling about all kinds of things. Rainbow Dash shrugged and relaxed, enjoying the attention she was getting.

Such is the life of a celebrity cadet.

* * *

><p>Soarin chuckled as he saw the attention that Rainbow Dash was getting. She'd be a popular Wonderbolt, that's for sure. He'd go and congratulate her once the crowd had gone. He'd brought a carrot cola with him to the race and took a large gulp of it, loving the feel of the fizzy drink going down his throat.<p>

"Well, that looked fun," Braeburn commented, looking at the crowd of cadets. Soarin nodded.

"I'm glad Wave Chill agreed to go to the air show in my place," He agreed. Wave Chill had eagerly agreed since he'd wanted to go to the race in the first place. He turned to his friend, suddenly curious.

"So, how are enjoying the academy, Brae?" he asked as he watching Rainbow Dash laughing at something one of the other cadets said.

"Oh…it's been great…really great," Braeburn replied, sighing happily. Soarin examined his buddy closely, catching sight of a light blush on his face. The pegasus stallion raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, what's going on?" he interrogated the Earth pony, who looked a little baffled.

"Nothin's goin' on, why d'ya ask?" Braeburn shifted his eyes left and right. Soarin chuckled. Braeburn was a terrible liar.

"I'm asking because your face is redder than your cutie mark."

Braeburn put a hoof to his cheek, his eyes widening. He was obviously trying to keep a straight face but he was smiling widely anyway.

"Brae…remember how I used to get you to answer me in high school?" Soarin plucked a feather from one of his wings and waved it threateningly in front of Braeburn's face, recalling the many times he'd tickled answers out of the Appaloosan Earth pony.

"Okay, okay, Ah'll talk!" Braeburn put his front hooves in the air, surrendering. "Ah…met a mare…that's all," He confessed, blushing impossibly brighter. Soarin was surprised. He couldn't remember Braeburn ever having feelings for anypony before.

"Well, congratulations, Brae. Do I know her?" Soarin asked. Braeburn nodded, looking away. "Well…who is she?"

"Um…she's…" Braeburn stopped talking after that, making Soarin face-hoof.

"You can't say it, can you?" he asked. Braeburn shook his head. "Maybe I could guess?"

"Yeah, guess," Braeburn looked relieved. Soarin put a hoof to his chin and picked the most obvious pony.

"Fleetfoot?"

"Nope."

"Huh?" Soarin looked bewildered. Pretty much everypony knew that Fleetfoot liked Braeburn…except Braeburn.

"Surprise?" Soarin guessed again, naming one of the only other mares he'd seen Braeburn with.

"Wrong again," Braeburn shook his head. Soarin couldn't think of anypony else, but began naming mares anyway.

"High Winds?"

"Not her."

"Blaze?"

"Nnnope."

"Is it one of the cadets?"

"None of the cadets."

"UGH! I'm terrible at this game. Can you give me a hint?" Soarin asked, giving in. Braeburn shrugged and nodded.

"Well…" He began before being stopped by Soarin.

"But make it an obvious hint because I'm terrible at guessing," He added, taking a large mouthful of his carrot cola. Soarin sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Okay. Well…she's the captain of the Wonderbolts and-"

Some kind of loud alarm began going off in Soarin's head and he sprayed out his cola like a volcano and began choking. Braeburn slapped Soarin on the back to get him to stop coughing. Once the pale blue stallion had got his breath back and wiped the cola from around his mouth, he addressed his friend in the calmest way he could manage:

"YOU LIKE-"

Braeburn suddenly covered Soarin's mouth, looking around to make sure nopony had heard the beginning of his sentence.

"Keep it down, Soar!" he ordered his friend. Soarin took a moment to take all this in before speaking again.

"Okay, so…how?" Was all he could manage to say. Braeburn told the story.

"Well…Ah met her the other day when Ah replaced Fast Clip and…Ah just kinda fell for her," He explained. "Ah've literally thought of nothin' else," he confessed, staring off into the distance.

That explained a lot.

"Ya don't say?" Soarin chuckled. Braeburn nodded, not understanding that Soarin was being sarcastic. "I can tell you really like Spitfire," He suddenly became a little serious. Braeburn looked over at Soarin, looking a little flustered now.

"Soarin, you've gotta help me. Ah dunno what to do. Ah'm not good with mares!" The Earth Pony panicked. "…especially pretty ones," He added, taking off his cowboy had a fiddling with it, like he always did when he was nervous or stressed. Soarin snorted at this.

"Why are you asking me? I'm not exactly a ladies stallion, myself," He reminded his friend. This didn't improve Braeburn's state.

"Well, you've gotta give me some advice, even a little would help 'cause Ah just can't do this alone, Soarin. Ah act like a goofball ev'rytime Ah see her. Just yesterday, she came into the staff room to get coffee and asked me where the sugar had been moved to and Ah froze. Ah just couldn't answer her and eventually Misty Fly had to tell her where the sugar was!" Braeburn ranted before putting his hat back on and pulling it over his eyes.

"_Wow…" _Soarin thought. He hated to see Braeburn upset, he had to help him, no matter how lame his advice was.

"Brae…I think you should just take baby steps with this. Why don't ya just start by being nice to her? Like…" Soarin paused, thinking of some examples to continue his pep-talk with. "Help her out with work or…ask her about her day."

"That'll work?" Braeburn peered out from under his hat. Soarin wasn't about to tell Braeburn that he thought his advice was dumb.

"I guess," He said simply. Braeburn smiled again, looking much happier.

"Thanks Soar. Ah'm gonna try," He said determinedly, putting on his bravest face. Soarin hoof bumped his friend before beginning to head over to Rainbow Dash, who was now surrounded by a smaller crowd. He stopped halfway and looked over his shoulder at Braeburn.

"Brae?" He called, making sure he had the stallions attention.

"What?" Braeburn asked, pricking up his ears. Soarin wanted to make sure this got inside Braeburn's head. It was important.

"Just…go easy on Spitfire, won't ya? She has a few trust issues and…let's just say she's had a rough past."

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash flopped down on her bed, humming '<em>We are the champions<em>'. She wanted to tell her friends about the race super badly. She quickly got out some paper and a quill and wrote as fast as she could because she was all hopped up on excitement.

_HIYA, GUYS!_

_I won ANOTHER race, guys! Hopefully Soarin will tell the other Wonderbolts how awesome I was in it. But…I can't take all the glory. It pains me to say this but…I've met somepony as fast as me._

_Spring Song pretty much matches me in speed and it drives me CRAZY! We drew in the race and she's pretty sore over it. I want to be friends with her again but now I'm seeing a darker side of her. I hope she doesn't turn out like Lightning Dust…or worse._

_On the bright side, now that she's rooming with a couple of the other cadets, I have an entire room to myself._

_I'll write tomorrow, as usual. I really miss you guys._

_Yours gloriously,_

_Rainbow Dash._

Once the letter was tucked in her saddlebag, Rainbow Dash lay sprawled on her bed in a starfish position. Spring Song was sleeping on the floor in Lullaby and Paradise's room, which was absolutely fine by Rainbow.

She enjoyed the alone time…sort of.

Maybe Spring Song secretly wanted to make amends. Rainbow Dash hated losing friends, and thought that it would be the same for everypony. But after witnessing Spring Song's behaviour in the race, she had no idea what thoughts were running through the pink mares head.

She'd probably never know.

Rainbow didn't even bother crawling under the covers that night; she just lay curled in the middle of the bed, still humming as she drifted into the land of dreams.

…**..**

**Endnote: WHOA! I've never had so much fun writing a chapter before. Writing the race scene was awesome and it really challenges your writing skills. **

**The saga will continue in chapter 8!**


	8. The Way Things Work

**Authors Note: I can't believe I'm on chapter eight of this story already. Time had simply flown by (pun not intended). But there's still a LOT of this story left and I've got to write it or I'll burst. **

Captain Alaska- I laughed when I read the end of your comment (actually I still am). Ya know, sometimes I read Spring Song's lines in Diamond Tiara's voice, even though I see her being played by a totally different actress. That's just me; I like coming up with voice actors who would be good for my OC's. Is that weird?

**Commencing chapter eight!**

* * *

><p>Soarin sighed as he rested his head on the table. The cadets were in the middle of the second half of drills and were currently doing a flag hunt. The chilly, late March breeze made the clouds outside slowly sway. It was a typical calm day, but one pony wasn't calm at all. Soarin let out another frustrated sigh as Braeburn began muttering something negative to himself. The earth pony was standing at the window, which the sun was shining brightly through, darn near blinding Soarin, probably dreading the end of drills, which was when he was planning to talk to Spitfire.<p>

"Hey, guyth," Fleetfoot greeted as she sat down next to Soarin at the table, making the stallion jolt with surprise at her sudden appearance.

"Warn me next time you're gonna do that," Soarin scolded the white maned mare, who just rolled her eyes and shoved Soarin.

"You're thuch a thcardey cat, ya know that?" She teased him in that regular lisp of hers. Soarin mumbled something under his breath that he'd rather Fleetfoot didn't hear. The light blue mare prodded Soarin's shoulder and the Wonderbolt co-captain obediatenly turned to face her.

"What'th goin' on with Braeburn? He looks thtressed," She commented, putting a hoof to her chin. Soarin looked over to his high school friend. Sure enough, a bead of sweat was going down his chin and he was mouthing something Soarin couldn't quite make out.

"He's just…under pressure," Soarin decided to say, not wanting to tell the truth, since Fleetfoot would get involved without a doubt. This was strictly between him and Braeburn.

"Well, maybe I could help," Fleetfoot grinned cracking her neck from side to side before prancing over to the earth pony and standing behind him. Braeburn gasped with surprise as Fleetfoot covered his eyes with her hooves. "Gueth who," She whispered into his ear, making Soarin roll his eyes.

"Howdy, Fleetfoot," Braeburn chuckled at the mare as she removed her hooves. She sat down beside him, beginning to yak away like a parrot. Soarin put his head in his hoof, staring past his two friends and out the window. He'd finished all his work so there was nothing left for him to do. When they had nothing to do in their teen years he and Braeburn would play these crazy games like 'What pie am I?' or 'Can we fit Soarin in a pillowcase?' He wasn't too fond of that last one.

Soarin tilted his head to the side and squinted when he saw a grey speck in the sky. Wait. Was it getting _bigger? _Yes, yes it was.

And it was heading right for the window.

"DUCK!" Soarin called to Braeburn and Fleet foot before diving out of the way. Fleetfoot rolled her eyes.

"There are no duckth in Cloudthdale," She tutted at him. Soarin face-hoofed and poked his hoof out from his hiding spot under a table to point at the window.

"No, DUCK!" He repeated. Fleetfoot turned her head to the side and gasped before rugby tackling Braeburn to the ground, moments before the 'whatever-it-was' shot through the open window and skidded across the floor before coming to a stop against the wall. Soarin realised that the 'thing' was a pegasus mare. She had grey fur and yellow-amber cross eyes and her cutie mark was a bunch of bubbles. Soarin rushed over to see if she was okay.

"Oh my gosh, are you hurt?" he asked her, assisting her to her hooves. The mare rubbed her head and nodded.

"Nah, I'm fine," She smiled.

"Um…do you often rocket through windows like that?" He joked. The mare gave a little chuckle.

"Surprisingly often," She replied before shrugging. "I just don't know what goes wrong."

Soarin was surprised at how optimistic this pegasus was after zooming through a window at 80mph. Her eyes uncrossed as she realised something.

"Oh yeah, I just remembered why I came here," She fumbled through the saddlebag she was wearing before pulling out an envelope. "I've got a letter for my friend Rainbow Dash. Do you know where she is?"

"Oh, yeah she's-"

Before Soarin could answer the door to the training grounds opened and Spitfire entered followed by Rainbow Dash and a few of the other cadets.

"What in the name of Celestia just crashed through the window?" The fiery maned mare yelled, sounding ticked. The grey mare bowed her head, her smile fading. Soarin shrugged.

"Everything's fine, Spitfire, the window was open," Soarin tried to look on the bright side of things, though he could tell Spitfire didn't appreciate this. Rainbow Dash gasped and rushed over to her friend.

"Derpy, what're you doing here?" She asked. Soarin raised an eyebrow. This mare's name was Derpy? Appropriate. The mare, now revealed to be Derpy, lit up at the sight of her friend.

"Oh…I was just delivering the mail and…it didn't go so well," She laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her head. Rainbow Dash beamed when Derpy passed her the letter that was addressed to her. Spitfire sighed and readjusted her shades.

"Well, at least that's all this is about. I was worried somepony had dropped a bomb or somethin' in here," She groaned as she looked up at the clock on the wall. "It looks like drills are over for today."

"At least our team won the flag hunt," a pink furred cadet that Soarin had seen Rainbow Dash with before whispered to the green mare beside her. Rainbow Dash looked a little irritated when she heard this.

"Okay, you're dismissed," Spitfire flicked her hoof and the cadets went their separate ways. She began heading back out the door. Soarin then remembered something and looked over to Braeburn. His earth pony friend was standing by the window, staring straight at Spitfire. His jaw was slack and his eyes were wide and Soarin saw that he was drooling a little, too. Fleetfoot stood beside him, prodding his shoulder.

"Braeburn, hellooooo? Anypony in there?" She asked him, poking him harder. Soarin put his head in his hoof and shook his head. When Spitfire vanished through the door, Braeburn showed a sign of life. He dipped his head and grumbled, looking mad at himself. "Are you okay?" Fleetfoot put a hoof on his shoulder. Braeburn sighed and slumped low to the ground.

"Eeyup," he replied, pulling his hat over his eyes.

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash sat in the kitchen at one of the counters, ripping open the envelope. Derpy sat beside her, eating some of Braeburn's delicious muffins. She unfolded the letter and read it, grinning like a maniac.<p>

_Dear Rainbow Dash,_

_Sorry that we couldn't get Spike to send this. He has a bad case of the trots and I don't want to disturb him. It's a good thing Derpy's always happy to help._

_We're all glad that you've settled in so well, but we're a little concerned about this Spring Song. It's not like you to be bothered by something like this, so if she really is that bad, you should tell Soarin or Braeburn._

The next sentence was in different hoof writing that Rainbow recognised as Pinkie Pie's.

_**Hey, Dashie, I just wanted to ask you something. I never had a chance to try it myself when we went to Cloudsdale before, so can you tell me if clouds taste like cotton candy?**_

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and resumed reading the letter. Pinkie Pie was so random!

_You're not missing much up there. Today we're all helping out at Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack and her family are planting some new trees and we all decided to lend a hoof._

_We'll write to you again, soon._

Rainbow Dash saw that the next part of the letter was written in Fluttershy's hoof.

**Rainbow Dash, could you come and visit us sometime soon. I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to. It's just that we all miss you so much.**

_Your best friends,_

_Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity and Fluttershy._

Rainbow Dash smiled as she folded up the letter and tucked it into the pocket of her cadet's uniform. Derpy gave a loud belch as she finished the last muffin. She licked the last crumbed from around her mouth and turned to Braeburn.

"Whoa, your muffins are fantastic!" She exclaimed, throwing her hooves into the air. Rainbow Dash became concerned when they saw that Braeburn was angrily pounding dough, like he had the other day when he was mad at Soarin. Rainbow realised that she still didn't know what they were arguing about back then. She decided that she didn't want to know what he was mad about now; she'd had enough of angry ponies.

"Thanks for delivering this, Derpy, I really appreciate it," Rainbow drew her attention away from the mad earth pony. Derpy smiled one of those signature grins of hers.

"No problem; I'm always happy to help," she gave Rainbow a lopsided salute. She looked behind her at the clock and leapt up from her chair. "I've gotta get going. I've gotta pick Dinky up from school in twenty minutes," She headed out the door, saying a final goodbye.

"See ya, Derps!" Rainbow Dash called after the grey mare. She turned back to Braeburn, opening her mouth to speak to him, wanting to tell him about her letter. She quickly changed her mind when she saw that Braeburn was already talking to himself."

"Ah could've said something!" He raved at himself through gritted teeth, pounding harder on the dough. "Or Ah could've at least smiled!"

Rainbow Dash decided to leave, not really wanting to know what Braeburn was so mad about. She couldn't remember ever seeing him mad. He always had this glow about him, along with a wide smile. Usually, they'd be lucky if he ever shut up. At that moment Soarin burst through the door looking excited.

"Brae, Dash, flour!" He addressed the two ponies and a sack of flour on the counter, making Rainbow Dash shift her eyes uncomfortably. Something must be really exciting if Soarin was talking to inanimate objects. "Blaze, High Winds and Surprise want to come and watch you train with me, Rainbow!"

"That's awesome!" Rainbow exclaimed, jumping up from the chair and flapping her wings with excitement. Braeburn stopped throwing punches at the dough long enough to say 'great'.

"Don't feel down, buddy," Soarin stood beside his friend. Rainbow tilted her head, baffled by all of this. What in Tartarus was up with Braeburn all of a sudden?

"What's goin' on?" Rainbow Dash asked them, wanting to get answers.

"Ah messed up, Soar," Braeburn pulled his hat over his eyes again.

"Messed up WHAT?" Rainbow Dash asked again, growing a little irritated.

"We'll figure something out," Soarin patted his friend on the shoulder.

"I DEMAND TO KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING!" Rainbow bellowed, flapping several feet into the air.

"Ah sure hope so," Braeburn smiled weakly up at Soarin, ignoring Rainbow Dash entirely. Rainbow gave a sound that sounded like a mix of a growl and a groan and stormed out the room, deciding that she wanted no part in their problems, anyway. She was gonna go down to the staff room to wait for Surprise, Blaze and High Winds.

She thought back to the letter from her friends. Was she really letting Spring Song get under her skin like that? Nah. She'd just ignore Spring Song from now on, just like she'd done in drills yesterday. If she paid no attention to Spring Song from now on, there would be nothing to worry about. That's how things would work from here on out.

* * *

><p>"…and they're even gonna take pictures of it!" Soarin finished ranting to Braeburn about Surprise, High Winds and Blaze's agreement to come to one of Rainbow Dash's training session. Braeburn bit his lip, trying to smile. It was hard; he'd never had to go through this before.<p>

"That's great, Soar," He grinned at his friend, though his voice shook as he spoke. He hadn't really been listening to Soarin at all. The events of the afternoon haunted him like a spirit or poltergeist, threatening to drive him insane. The two stallions were heading through the hallways towards the staff room. Rainbow Dash had already left. Soarin looked up at Braeburn, seeming both concerned and mad at the same time.

"Braeburn, this is freaking me out. You _never _frown. Usually you're the happiest pony around, so SNAP OUT OF IT!" Soarin looked uncharacteristically threatening. Braeburn took a step away from him as they rounded a corner. He thanked Celestia that they were almost at the staff room. He just wanted to sit down with a cup of coffee and forget all about what happened earlier. The two friends noticed that one of the doors was open. Braeburn noticed that the sign on it read 'First Aid'. He heard a loud crashing sound from inside followed by some angry muttering. Soarin raised a brow and peered around the door.

"Oh, hey Spitfire, what're you doing in here?" The pegasus stallion asked. Braeburn felt that familiar freezing sensation flow through his body that threatened to completely overtake him. His heart was beating so loud it was like there was an entire marching band in his ears.

"Oh hey, Soarin," came the reply from inside. "Do ya know where the bandages are in here?"

"Yeah, I'll get 'em," Soarin disappeared into the closet and Spitfire came out, still muttering. Braeburn avoided eye contact with her. The two of them just stood there in silence, waiting for Soarin to come out. Every second that past felt like a mallet bashing into Braeburn's head. He wanted to say something, but he just couldn't. "Here they are," Soarin came out with a roll of bandages and tossed them to Spitfire. "Why do ya need them, anyway?" He asked.

"Oh, I was just trying to repair the fog maker on the air obstacle course- loose gear of somethin'- and…as you can see I'm not gifted in that department," The fiery maned mare raised her right front hoof, which was pretty swollen. Braeburn gasped.

"Holy Celestia! What happened?" The earth pony took hold of Spitfire's hoof and raised it up to eye level.

"That's just what happens when you drop a hammer on your hoof," the mare replied, quickly pulling her hoof away from Braeburn and proceeding to wrap the bandages around it. Braeburn realised that she really must have no idea how to repair things if she was trying to fix a loose gear with a hammer. Braeburn looked over to Soarin and saw a look in his eyes that suggested he was planning something. The pegasus stallion looked from Braeburn to Spitfire and then back to Braeburn again.

"Ya know, Braeburn's pretty good at fixing and building things," He told Spitfire. Braeburn's eyes bulged and he shot an angry look at Soarin. What in Equestria was he doing? Spitfire looked up from her bandages to reply.

"He is?" She raised an eyebrow. Soarin stood beside Braeburn and put a hoof on his shoulder.

"Yep. He helped build his hometown and he rebuilt the Apple family farm. A loose gear is nothing to him," Soarin spoke about Braeburn as if he were some kind of new product to be sold. "You'll help out, right Brae?"

"Um…" Braeburn felt that freezing sensation again. He looked down at the ground. Maybe if he wasn't looking at her, he wouldn't mess up. "Sure Ah'll do it," he managed to say. Success!

"Great," Spitfire gave him a tiny smile. "Meet me by the air obstacle course at 1500 hours; the tools are already out there." She headed down the hall and rounded the corner, Braeburn blushing as he found his head swaying side to side in rhythm with the swing of her tail.

"What just happened?" Braeburn rubbed his head, feeling a little faint. Soarin gave him a playful slap on his back that pretty much knocked the breath out of him. He readjusted his cowboy hat before turning to look at his high school buddy.

"I'll tell ya what happened. You scored yourself some alone time with Spitfire," Soarin wiggled his eyebrows and Braeburn gave him a shove that turned out rougher than he'd wanted.

"Nah, _you _scored me some alone time with her," Braeburn corrected Soarin. "Thanks, by the way."

"Anything for my BEPFF," Soarin shrugged. Braeburn tilted his head and mouthed '_what?' _Soarin rolled his eyes. "Best Earth Pony Friend Forever. Duh!" he explained, sticking his tongue out at the end of his sentence. "Now c'mon, we've gotta get to the staff room before Rainbow Dash finds us and _drags_ us there," Soarin practically began pushing Braeburn down the hall. On the outside, Braeburn looked calm but inside his head he was doing a happy dance. He couldn't wait until 1500 hours.

Whenever that was.

* * *

><p>"Hurry up!" Rainbow Dash bellowed from atop a cloud. She was waiting for Soarin to quit talking to High Winds, Blaze and Surprise and get up here! He was gonna show the three Wonderbolt mares how she could now do their firework trick Blaze was holding a camera and was apparently going to photograph the entire trick. Rainbow Dash was practically itching with anticipation and it was taking all of her will power to sit still. She felt a weight lift from her shoulders as Soarin flapped up to sit on the cloud beside her.<p>

"Okay, so you remember everything we practiced?" He checked with her. He had a determined look on his face that showed that he really wanted to prove to the other Wonderbolts how good a mentor he was.

"I do," Rainbow Dash nodded her head enthusiastically, praying that Soarin would only make this a short pep-talk. She wanted to show off her stuff to the three mares watching below and each second that dragged on felt like an _hour._

"Don't forget that we do a flip at the end," Soarin put a hoof on her shoulder.

"I remember," Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.

"And if you don't feel like you've got enough speed at the climax of the trick you can kick off me."

"I know."

"Remember that timing is everything; if we try and make the fireworks even a _moment _apart the entire thing could look like a mess!"

"I KNOW!"

"And make sure that-"

"SOARIN!" Rainbow Dash glared up at her mentor with both annoyance and humour in her magenta eyes. Soarin sighed and spread his wings. He'd taken off his officer's uniform for this. Rainbow Dash had never had much of an opportunity to examine the co-captain without his uniform. His pale blue fur looked quite soft and she couldn't help but notice his odd cutie mark: a lightning bolt through two crested waves. She wondered what his special talent was. Maybe she'd ask him later.

"Okay, let's get this show on the road," Soarin stared straight ahead. Rainbow Dash felt her entire body tingle with adrenaline and she began aching for Soarin to just say-

"NOW!"

That was the cue. Rainbow Dash and Soarin took off, Rainbow flying diagonally right, Soarin flying diagonally left. Rainbow looked over to Soarin, waiting for him to give her the signal. He shifted his eyes to the left and gave Dash a wink. That was the sign to go on to the next part of the trick.

The two pegasi flew closer together until they could safely circle around eachother. They then flew in a straight line up until they had gathered enough speed to create the firework.

Rainbow and Soarin flew in a knot formation around eachother before zooming in opposite direction, Rainbow letting out a loud cheer as the two of them left behind an explosion of colourful fireworks. She did the final flip before swooping downwards. Rainbow heard cheers erupt from Surprise, High Winds, Blaze and Braeburn down below and Surprise even threw come confetti into the air. Rainbow giggled at how much she reminded her of Pinkie Pie. She grinned as she though that sooner or later she would be performing that trick in front of hundreds of ponies. She touched down on the cloudy ground and the four observing ponies rushed over to congratulate her. Soarin landed beside her a few seconds later and Rainbow Dash immediately began ranting about the trick.

"WHOA! Did you see me, Soarin? I was like _whoosh _and you were all _zoom _and then we went _**BOOM **_and we make such a good team, and you were AWESOME!" Rainbow Dash halted her blabbering and threw herself at Soarin, squeezing the breath out of him.

"Heh…we _do_ make a good team," Soarin replied, squeezing her, too. Rainbow Dash swore she heard High Winds say 'aaaw' but she had no idea why. She parted from Soarin and gave a little bounce, feeling like the happiest pony in Equestria. Surprise piped up.

"Hey, how about we celebrate Rainbow Dash's awesomeness with some muffins?" She suggested, earning murmurs of agreement throughout the assembled six ponies. "Say, anypony have the time?" She added, looking at her bare wrist. High Winds looked at the watch that was hanging around her neck.

"3:15," She replied, before heading off to the mess hall. "Hurry up, slowpokes; we can look over the pictures we took of the trick while we eat."

"Yeah, last one there's a pile of dragon doody!" Surprise chirped, flapping ahead of the other ponies. Rainbow Dash was about to take off after her when Braeburn tapped her on the shoulder. Rainbow Dash turned to meet his gaze.

"Um, Dash. What time is 1500 hours?" The earth pony asked, looking a little worried. Rainbow Dash raised a brow, wondering why the light gold stallion would want to know something like that.

"3 O'clock. Why?" Rainbow asked. Braeburn suddenly gasped and took off in the other direction in a panic, leaving a cloud of dust behind him. Rainbow blinked, confused, as the dust settled.

"Um…bye then?" she said to the air.

* * *

><p>Spitfire leaned against the purple fog maker, tapping her left hind hoof on the cloud ground. He was meant to be here fifteen minutes ago, so where in Equestria was he? The golden pegasus leaned her head against the machine, gritting her teeth. If that earth pony didn't show up she'd…she'd…she didn't know! Usually the fiery tempered mare could come up with a threat in moments, but she was completely stumped this time. She couldn't slap him or anything, he was too…nice. She sighed, allowing herself to sink down into the clouds, feeling comforted at their softness.<p>

She sighed, tracing circles in the clouds. Being the Wonderbolt captain was pretty stressful. Then again, she was always stressed. Always. And if she wasn't stressed she'd be angry, upset or tired. She looked behind her at the shiny, purple fog maker, catching sight of her reflection. She lifted her shades, sighing as she set her eyes on her regular frown. The only things that could really make her smile were her teammates and Rainbow Dash. She shook off her sadness and pushed her sunglasses back up her nose. She was aware of approaching hoofsteps and turned to see Soarin's earth pony friend approaching. She was about to give him a stern talking to when he spoke instead. He sounded frantic and worried.

"Ah'm real sorry that Ah'm late ma'am. Soarin wanted me ta watch him and Rainbow Dash do a trick and Ah guess we lost track of time. Ah didn't intend for this ta happen. Please excuse mah rudeness," He took off his cowboy hat and wrung it in his hooves. Spitfire was pretty baffled. Why did he care so much about being late…and why did he want her forgiveness. She was still ticked but she just shrugged it off.

"It's no big deal, at least you're here" she said, leaning back against the fog maker. The earth pony lit up and put his hat back on, trotting over to the red tool box that was resting beside the machine. He opened up the hatch in the back of the fog maker that contained all the mechanisms and began tinkering away with a wrench, probably trying to locate the loose gear.

"So…uh…what's it like, ya know, bein' the captain of the Wonderbolt's?" the stallion (Spitfire tried to remember his name; Bertie…Brandie…Braeburn! That was it!) asked her. Spitfire folded her arms and began kicking at a tuft of cloud that stuck out from the rest of the ground.

"It's…cool," She stated, simply. Why did he even care? She stopped kicking the cloud and stared straight down. Her ears pricked up as she caught the sound of Braeburn whistling as he worked. "So…I thought you were an apple bucker? Where did you learn to build things?" She asked him. She didn't know much about earth ponies, but she knew that unicorns were more common repair ponies that them.

"My father taught me," He replied cheerfully, not taking his eyes off his work. "And he learnt from his father and so on."

Spitfire felt a pang of envy as she heard the stallion talk about his family. She let out a small sigh as she thought of how big the apple family was. It made her family of one look absolutely pathetic. She felt ashamed for even thinking about it. She didn't need a family.

"There we go, all done!" Braeburn stepped back to admire his work. Spitfire shut the hatch and moved to the front of the machine where the button that turned it on and off was. She pressed it and sure enough a strong jet of fog shot out the front of it. Spitfire found herself pretty impressed, which didn't really happen often, unless Rainbow Dash did a Sonic Rainboom. She turned it off again and walked back round to Braeburn.

"I've gotta admit, you did good," She gave him a look of approval before reaching into the pocket of her captains uniform and pulling out her wallet, which was made of black leather and had her cutie mark embroidered into it. "So, how much do ya want?" She asked him. Braeburn looked shocked as she said this.

"Wait, what?" He asked her. Spitfire raised her wallet up.

"How many bits do you want?" She repeated, a little clearer. Braeburn shook his head.

"Nah, Ah can't ask for money. This is on the house," He told her. It was Spitfire's turn to look shocked. She couldn't help but feel a little suspicious, too

"You seriously want to do this for nothing? But…you've gotta want _something_" She said, her confusion clearly shown on her face. Braeburn nodded.

"Nnnope," He spoke in that accent of his. "If ya need somethin' else repaired, ya know where ta find me."

Spitfire just gave him a nod, feeling pretty bewildered. Why would he do this for nothing? It just wasn't normal. Ponies never did favours for Captain Spitfire and she didn't do favours for anypony else. That was just the way things worked.

"See ya later, ma'am," Braeburn smiled at her as he walked away, back to the mess hall, where he disappeared through the double doors, leaving Spitfire alone with her confusion. She sighed and took off her sunglasses, letting them hang limply around her neck by the red string they were attached to.

"_Control your Celestia damn emotions," _She thought to herself, rubbing her temples. This earth pony was too kind for his own good. Kind ponies had a way of working their way into Spitfire's head and rooting themselves there. She shook her head and trotted over to the other side of the fog machine. She turned it on, her mane being swept in one direction as the force of the fog thundered past her. She then turned it off again, then on again and then off again. Finally she stared straight up at the purple machine, knowing that now it was fixed it'd be good for the cadets to use in an exercise.

But she had no idea _which _exercise the cadets could use it in. She just couldn't focus. Because no matter what she tried…

She couldn't get Braeburn out of her mind.

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash stared at the piece of paper she'd balanced on her nose. She blew it up in the air only for it to float back down onto her face again. She sat up with much difficulty, groaning at the uneasy feeling in her stomach. After she'd performed the trick with Soarin, they'd gone back to the kitchen to make muffins. Unfortunately, since Braeburn had run off to who-knows-where and none of the remaining ponies knew how to cook very well, they'd decided to wing it. The resulting muffins weren't nearly as good as the ones Braeburn made, not at all. They must have forgotten a few ingredients because Rainbow knew that muffins weren't supposed to be sticky and blobby. But, they'd eaten them anyway and in the end they'd all had to leave with tummy aches. Rainbow decided to just get the letter over with so she could lie back until her tummy felt normal again. She grabbed the quill in her teeth and began to hurriedly write.<p>

_Hey, guys!_

_I'm gonna make this one quick, because my stomach's not feeling right…at all! Life lesson for you guys, when life gives you ingredients to make muffins, WAIT FOR A PROFESSIONAL TO MAKE THEM!_

_Everything was okay today, I guess. Spring Song's team totally thrashed mine in the flag hunt today and she's probably never gonna let me live that down. In other news, I finally got to perform a trick in front of the Wonderbolt's today. I'd send you the pictures if Blaze had remembered to take the lens cap off it before using it. As you can imagine, I was awesome. _

_I'll write tomorrow, as usual, and promise to send _me _another letter soon. Derpy literally delivered your last one with a crash!_

_Yours outstandingly,_

_Rainbow Dash._

Rainbow sighed as she rolled her letter up and practically threw it into her saddlebag. She lay flat on her bed and groaned. She was only able to lie there for a few moments before feeling a little queasy. She jumped up in alarm and made a B-line for the door as she felt a churning sensation in her belly, taking a sharp right as she headed for the bathrooms.

She'd never be able to look at muffins in the same way again after this!

* * *

><p><strong>This is now the longest chapter in the story so far, which kinda explains the long time it took to get done. Sorry about that by the way. Hey, I've just realised something. This is the first time since chapter four that I've wrote from each of the four main characters' point of view. Anyway, the story continues in chapter nine where we take a small time jump and Rainbow Dash and Spring Song have a little confrontation.<strong>


	9. Horseshoe Hunting

**Authors Note: This chapter is rated T for some slight bloodshed.**

Sparkling-nexis137- I teared up a little when I read that my story was your favourite. Thank you! *hugs*. I promise that this story will get better, too.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe I've been here two weeks already," Rainbow Dash sighed as she reclined atop the fluffy cloud that was suspended directly above the academy, putting her shades on to block out the sun. With March slowly turning into April, the weather was growing warmer. Drills had ended for today and Rainbow Dash and Soarin had just finished their latest lesson. Soarin had taught her a double Buccaneer Blaze, as promised, and Rainbow was now relaxing with a soda in one hoof, stress free and feeling fulfilled. Soarin sat beside her, sipping some lemonade.<p>

"It's gone too fast," He agreed, swallowing his drink. "Pretty soon you'll be leaving for Ponyville again…" he sounded almost sad. Rainbow lifted up her shades and gave Soarin and annoyed glower.

"Don't say that, Soar. There's still over three months!" Rainbow didn't want the boot camp to end, either, but she was looking forward to seeing her friends again. Speaking of Dash's friends, they had agreed over letters to meet up sometime, maybe at the Spring Celebration that Ponyville held each year to celebrate the arrival of spring.

"Sorry, Dash. I don't want you to leave, that's all," he sighed, laying on his tummy and putting his head in one hoof. Rainbow was a little confused. Did he mean that he'd miss _her _or he'd miss _all _the cadets? True, he didn't really know most of the cadets that well, though. Maybe he just wasn't looking forward to all that work that came after the boot camp.

"Hey, I'll become a Wonderbolt soon enough and then we can fly together all the time," Rainbow tried to perk him up, falling into another of her daydreams of flying with her lifelong heroes. Soarin gave her a huge smile.

"I know you'll be a Wonderbolt, too, Dashie. I don't have a single doubt in my mind."

Rainbow lifted up her shades and gave Soarin a weird look. "Dashie?" She echoed him. Nopony except her friends called her Dashie. Soarin shifted his eyes.

"Oh, sorry, Dash. I understand if you don't want me to call you that. It's just that I heard your friends call you Dashie before and… I just liked the sound of it," he shrugged. Rainbow gave him a smirk that said 'meh'.

"I don't mind, Soarin, you go ahead and call me whatever you want," she told him, putting her shades back on and taking a gulp of her soda. She would miss hanging out with him. It wasn't every day that a Wonderbolt came up to her offering to help her with tricks. Now that she thought about it, she would consider Soarin her best friend at the academy. A little over a week ago she may have said it was Spring Song, but now the pink mare was acting like a jerk. For the past week Rainbow Dash had been avoiding the blond pegasus like the plague. She hadn't been bothered by her for quite some time; maybe she'd given up and realised that Rainbow wasn't easy prey. She smirked as she imagined a blue bunny outrunning an angry pink fox.

"What are you smiling at?" Soarin asked her, noticing Dash's expression. Dash smirked a little more, picturing the pink fox covered in mud, now.

"Oh, nothin'," She chuckled, sipping her soda again.

…**..**

Horseshoe Hunting.

It was one of the more elusive activities at the academy, but it was by far the most intense. It combined the Wonderbolts' skills of flight, defence, attack and speed in one big activity.

The rules of Horseshoe Hunting were simple. There were twenty horseshoes hidden around the training grounds, some silver, and some gold. The cadets were separated into two teams, also gold or silver. The ponies in the gold team had to find all the silver horseshoes and put them in their stash (most commonly a crack in a cloud or cliff) and the silver team had to find all the gold horseshoes and put them in _their _stash. But it wasn't all that simple. The teams can get their horseshoes back by stealing them from their opponents' stash and fighting for them. The first team to find all of their horseshoes wins. Most Horseshoe Hunts could last anywhere from one hour to four, but on the rare occasion, they took more than one set of drills to finish.

Rainbow Dash couldn't wait to get started. The Horseshoe Hunt sounded super fun. She was on the gold team with Beau, Stargazer, Sugar Swoop, Paradise, Smart Set and Free Fall.

"We're totally gonna kick the other teams flanks!" Sugar Swoop declared putting on his most determined face. Rainbow Dash had made it her goal to win, especially since Spring Song was on the silver team. Since Rainbow was on the gold team, she had a gold coloured band around her hoof that was identical to the ones the rest of her team was wearing.

"Are you all ready?" Spitfire called out to the cadets as they stood on opposite sides of the landing strip. The golden mare was replied by a bunch of enthusiastic cheers of agreement. She blew her whistle and the two teams of seven took off into the air to find those horseshoes. Rainbow Dash saw that her team was mostly searching around the mountain, so she decided to look by the Dizzitron. She zoomed over to the towering device and nosed around the clouds surrounding it. She looked on top of it and then finally trotted over to the control panel that worked the machine. She let out a silent cheer as she saw a silver horseshoe hooked around one of the levers. She took it in her teeth and flapped off, deciding to find the others and find out where their stash was.

She encountered Sugar Swoop atop a cloud hovering close to the mountain. "Hey guys, I found one," she declared, taking the horseshoe out of her mouth so she could talk. Sugar Swoop gave her a slap on the back.

"Awesome, Dash!" He congratulated her. "The stash is over here," he led her over to a crevice in the mountain. Rainbow Dash, however, didn't think this was the best place for their stash.

"Seriously, Sugar Swoop, a hole in the mountain? That's too obvious. We need to place our stash somewhere that the other team won't even think to look," Rainbow threw her hooves into the air to emphasize. The rest of her team gathered around to try and think of somewhere to hide their stash. Rainbow tapped her noggin as if trying to knock an idea into her head. She let out a gasp as she got an idea. She knew that pegasi tended to fly high above the ground to see things better. So the answer was simple. They needed to hide it _under _something.

"Did ya think of something?" Free Fall asked Rainbow, looking hopeful. Rainbow Dash nodded and motioned for them to fly around the mountain a little. The group were led to a large shrub perched on an outcrop of a cliff.

"We can hide the horseshoes under here," she placed her silver horseshoe under the shrub to demonstrate and then, as if given a silent command, Stargazer fluttered into the air and looked down at the shrub.

"Nice thinking, Rainbow Dash, I can't see it at all from up here," the charcoal coloured mare reported in that usual high, hippie-like voice of hers. Rainbow grinned to herself, congratulating herself on a job-well-done.

"Now, we need somepony to stay here and guard our stash just in case. Who wants to be our guard?" Rainbow Dash asked her team.

"Ooh, pick me!" Paradise raised her hoof. Rainbow Dash saw that none of the other ponies wanted to take this position so she allowed Paradise to guard the stash, reminding her that she had to pretend to look for horseshoes so she wouldn't give away their stash.

"As for the rest of us, Beau and Free Fall will look around the mountain some more, Sugar Swoop will try and find out where the other teams stash is, Stargazer and Smart Set will look around the air obstacle course and I'll look by the other training devices," She listed the team's positions and they eagerly split up to search for horseshoes.

Rainbow Dash managed to find one buried in a clump of clouds beside the racetrack and headed to the stash to put it there. Paradise was doing a good job being the guard. She was flapping around the clouds near the cliff face, making sure to keep one eye on the shrub at all times. Rainbow gave her a nod of approval, which Paradise quickly returned. The green mare was slowly talking to Rainbow Dash more, though she only did whenever Spring Song wasn't around. That wasn't very often at all since Paradise followed Spring Song around like a shadow. Dash almost felt sorry for Paradise. Spring Song treated her like a slave, when Paradise saw Spring Song as her BFF. Rainbow frowned as she realised that Paradise probably didn't even know what _real _friendship was. She wished she could help her. She sighed and returned to looking for horseshoes. She encountered Lullaby and Cinder searching by the Dizzitron. She was about to tell them that there weren't any horseshoes there before remembering that they were on the opposite team. Instead, she waved at them. Lullaby cupped a hoof around her mouth and called out:

"We're totally gonna win!"

Rainbow smirked before yelling back. "In your dreams!"

They both burst out laughing and Cinder giggled a little, too. Rainbow suddenly felt the air go cold and as she looked up from her spot at the end of the landing strip to see a familiar pink pegasus flapping down to talk to Lullaby and Cinder.

"Did you find any horseshoes, yet?" Spring Song asked Lullaby. The purple mare beamed as she held up her hoof. She had cleverly tucked the horseshoe in the silver band she was wearing.

"Nice job, Lullaby," Spring Song smiled at the other mare. "Now, go and put it in the stash and make sure nopony from the gold team follows you."

Rainbow Dash realised that Spring Song probably hadn't noticed her yet, which gave her the perfect chance to find the other teams stash and plan a way to steal the horseshoes and hide them again. She suddenly became aware of Spring Song speaking to Cinder. The timid blue mare shrunk back a little, not meeting Spring Song's gaze.

"_Well_?" Spring Song hissed at Cinder. "Did you find any horseshoes or not?"

"N-n-no. Sorry, S-s-spring Song," Cinder trembled, as sweat began to appear on her brow. Spring Song shoved her face in Cinders so they were nose to nose.

"Well, you'd better find some or I'll take every stuttering syllable of yours and shove them back down your throat," she threatened. Cinder flew off faster than Rainbow had ever seen her fly before. She was basically a dark blue blur. Rainbow felt her blood boil and marched over to Spring Song.

"Hey, Spring Song, what they hay was that for?" Dash poked the pink pegasus roughly on the shoulder. Spring Song gave Rainbow Dash a phoney smile.

"Oh, hey there, _Rainbow Dash_," she chirped, saying _Rainbow Dash_ the same way you'd say 'garbage'.

"Enough of the chatter, Spring Song, you didn't have to talk to Cinder like that, ya know."

Spring Song rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up, Rainbow _Crash_, Cinder can handle it. She may be the most useless cadet here, but she's think-skinned."

Rainbow raised her hoof to slap the pink mare senseless, before forcing herself to put it back down, tapping it on the cloudy ground instead to keep it occupied. "How dare you speak about her that way, you…you…" Rainbow couldn't think of anything insulting enough to say.

"Just go away, Dash. Don't you have some horseshoes to find…not that you _will _find any," Spring Song flapped away after that, leaving Rainbow Dash alone with her pent up anger. She briefly lost herself in a vision of strapping Spring Song to the Dizzitron before telling herself to just continue with the Horseshoe Hunt. She wanted it all to be over. Still muttering negative things about Spring Song, Rainbow Dash made her way back to Paradise at the stash.

"How many horseshoes are there, now?" she asked the green mare. Paradise fluttered down to land beside the shrub and lifted it up revealing nine silver horseshoes.

"One more to go," Paradise smiled brightly. Rainbow was relieved that this game would soon end. "Turns out that the silver team were finding their own horseshoes and hiding them all in a different stash and you should have seen their faces when Sugar Swoop stole them all," she added, giggling.

"Thank Celestia for that," Rainbow commented, wiping her brow. "You heard anything from Stargazer, Smart Set and the others?"

"Yeah, Beau and Free Fall found two around the mountain. Stargazer and Smart set found a gold one but apart from that, nothing," Paradise reported. "I'm just glad you didn't send anypony to look in the storm clouds. I mean you'd have to be a total pea brain to go in there," she added, looking warily up at the cluster of storm clouds that Dash had flown through in the race. A light bulb went off in Rainbow Dash's head.

The storm clouds!

Of course!

There must be a horseshoe or two hidden in there somewhere. It was the most challenging place to go in the entire academy, so it must be some kind of test of strength to see who could brave the tempest clouds. Rainbow took off without another word at full speed towards the cluster of clouds, ignoring Paradise's cry of 'I didn't know you were a pea brain!'

Rainbow gulped as she flew into the greyness of the storm clouds. She braved the strong winds and focused on trying to locate a silver horseshoe on one of the clouds. She looked and looked and looked with no luck. UGH! Maybe there weren't any horseshoes in here. Suddenly she saw something glint out of the corner of her eye. She gasped and zoomed over to it, trying her best to shield her eyes from the pummelling of the wind. She reached out a hoof and smiled as she felt something heavy and horseshoe-shaped. She triumphantly looked at the prize in her hoof only for her features to fall when she saw what it was.

A _gold _horseshoe.

"OH, COME ON!" Rainbow yelled, looking with fury at the horseshoe. Where in Equestria was the last silver one?

"Rainbow Dash?"

Oh no.

Spring Song loomed at one end of the cluster of clouds, one eyebrow raised. She caught sight of what Rainbow Dash was holding and began flapping over. "Give me that, Rainbow Crash. That's the last one my team needs!"

"What? There's no way you're getting this!" Rainbow clutched the horseshoe to her chest like it was some kind of precious treasure. "Why would I give you this anyways, 'cause I know it'll cause my team to lose?"

"Whoa, it's smarter than I thought," Spring Song muttered to herself. Rainbow felt her entire body burn as the word '_it_' came out of Spring Song's big mouth. She'd started calling Dash an 'It'!

"Go away, Spring Song. My team's gonna win and ya know what the best part about it is? There's nothing you can do about it!" Rainbow Dash taunted the pink pegasus, who gave the rainbow maned mare her signature scowl.

"Is that so?" She suddenly smirked. What was she up to? Suddenly, she lunged at Rainbow Dash and grabbed the horseshow, trying to tug it from Rainbow Dash's grasp.

"Hey, no fair!" Rainbow tugged harder. She then remembered that the cadets were free to fight each other for the horseshoes. Rainbow delivered a sharp kick to Spring Song's stomach, knocking the breath out of the pink demon-pony, causing her to clutch her tummy. Rainbow flapped her wings frantically, cursing as a furious gust of wind sent her tumbling over and over. She felt a strong pain between her ears and for a moment everything went fuzzy. She didn't realise that Spring Song had grabbed the horseshoe until she waved it in front of the cyan mare's face. Despite the throbbing in her head, Rainbow Dash grabbed Spring Song's hind legs as she tried to fly away and pulled her back, taking pleasure in the pink mare's squeals as she tried desperately to free herself from Rainbow Dash's strong hold. Rainbow winced as Spring Song suddenly kicked back with her left leg and made contact with Rainbow Dash's cheek. Rainbow clutched her sore cheek. She probed the inside of it with her tongue and tasted blood.

Spring Song was gonna get it.

Lightning cracked over their heads as Rainbow wrapped her front hooves around the fleeing Spring Song's waist and shook her, laughing with pride as she released the horseshoe, leaving Rainbow free to grab it and zoom away. The lighting crackled around her, darn near striking Rainbow as she weaved her way around the fast streaks of electricity. The wind was stronger and it was getting harder and harder to fly. To top it all off, it was raining. The storm cloud cluster in the Academy was the only place where you could find tempest clouds that never stopped spawning lightning. Usually, the entire area around it was safe from the thunder and other hazards. Rainbow knew that all she had to do to get to safety was make her way out of the clouds. She felt Spring Song tackle her from behind again and wrap her hooves around her throat. Rainbow gagged as the pink mare squeezed the air from her lungs. Rainbow managed to buck the mare from her back and turned to face her as she regained her control. Looks like they were gonna have to do things the hard way,

The two cadets zoomed at one another, Spring Song roaring in that stupid high voice of hers. Rainbow gritted her teeth as Spring Song rammed into her head-first. Each mare struggled at get a good hold of the other, pawing and punching each other. Spring Song managed to punch Rainbow's cheek, the same one as before, and Rainbow spat out some blood. She kicked Spring Song off her, still managing to keep hold of the horseshoe. Spring Song steadied herself and looked up just in time to get a slug in the face from Dash. Rainbow Dash became more frustrated as Soring Song blocked two more of her punches. They flew around each other, each glaring daggers at the other. Rainbow Dash knew that this was getting a little out of control but by now she was too angry to care.

Spring Song threw a flurry of punches at Rainbow's face, which the cyan mare blocked with ease. But with her hooves guarding her face, Spring Song had a clear target: her stomach. With a powerful hind-hoof-kick, Rainbow got the air pummelled from her. Rainbow felt tears sting her eyes as she clutched her throbbing tummy. This gave Spring Song more than enough time to sock Dash round the face again. Rainbow flew back, clashing with a storm cloud, wincing at the electric shock it gave her. The horseshoe was still safely in Rainbow's hoof.

Was it worth it? All this for a horseshoe?

Or was there more to it than that? Was Spring Song still mad at her for the whole Ray thing the other day? Spring Song just wouldn't listen to reason. When she told her that she didn't like Ray, the pink mare didn't believe her, but why?

"Hey, Dash, I know you like lounging bout and all, but this is a fight! GET UP!" Spring Song mocked, looking like a fierce beast with the blood trickling down her cheek, the lightning that crashed down all around her just added to her extreme evil-ness. Rainbow ducked as Spring Song whizzed towards her and the cyan mare punched Spring Song in her soft tummy as she sailed overhead. Spring Song bounced off the clouds, back into the fight and right into Rainbow Dash's clenched hoof. Spring Song clutched her jaw and spat out some blood before whipping round and returning Rainbow's punch, grabbing the horseshoe at last. Rainbow flapped up and used both hind legs to kick Spring Song in the gut, making the pegasus mare double over with a yelp of pain. Rainbow wrapped her fore hooves around Spring Song's windpipe and she squeezed. Spring Song began to splutter and choke and her eyes grew cloudy.

"Not so tough after all, eh?" Rainbow taunted, squeezing as hard as she could. Spring Song looked up to meet Dash's eyes. Rainbow was about to deliver a punch to the mare's face when her features softened and everything seemed to stop.

What was she doing?

She was fighting another pony over something as worthless as a stallion. Spring Song was bleeding heaving and now Rainbow Dash was strangling her. Judging by the limpness of her body, Spring Song was barely conscious. Rainbow felt her heart ache as she realised that she was being as much of a monster as Spring Song. She released the mare who took the biggest gulp of air ever, her messed up mane sticking to her face due to the rain. She looked like something that had just crawled out of the gutter, the gash on her cheek oozing blood one of her eyes swollen and purple coloured.

"Spring Song-" Rainbow Dash was suddenly knocked back by Spring Song again and pinned against a storm cloud that sent volts of electricity through her body.

"You! Useless! Pile of! Feathers!" Spring Song kicked Rainbow Dash roughly with each outburst. The two mares brawled for what felt like forever, punching, kicking, biting, ripping each other's fur until finally, Spring Song bucked Rainbow Dash away, right into the path of an oncoming lightning bolt. Rainbow felt her entire body sting like never before and the edges of her vision became blurry. She couldn't remember ever being in this much pain before. The electricity flowed through her veins like fire and she felt herself falling. She tried to flap her wings, call for help, anything, but it was like she couldn't control her body anymore. She was just a mind falling through the air, through the clouds. She felt her body go limp.

The last thing she heard was somepony calling her name before she blacked out.

* * *

><p>"Rainbow Dash?"<p>

The cyan mare tried to open her eyes but it was like they were glued shut. They were so heavy it was like trying to lift an elephant. She opened her mouth and a pained groan escaped her lips.

"She's awake, Doc!"

"S-Soarin?" Rainbow managed to open her eyes and she squinted at the sudden light. When her magenta eyes finally adjusted to the light she saw Soarin, Braeburn and Spitfire standing around her, looking down at her with concern.

"Wh-what happened?" Rainbow asked, sitting up. She was in a bed, _her_ bed, in _her _room.

"You got struck by lightning," Spitfire replied, passing Rainbow a glass of water, which she eagerly downed in seconds. "What were you doing up there, anyway?"

Rainbow tilted her head. "Looking for horseshoes, of course," she answered. It was Spitfire's turn to look confused.

"We never put any horseshoes in the tempest cloud cluster," she informed Dash. "It's too dangerous."

"But…there was a horseshoe there. A gold one. Spring Song had it," Rainbow explained. This was crazy. If Spitfire, Whiplash and Fast Clip never hid horseshoes up there, then how could there possibly be one tucked in a cloud? She was hurting too much to put much thought into it and the same nurse who had helped Fast Clip the other day showed up, holding a clipboard.

"It's good to see you're okay, Rainbow Dash. It's a good thing that lightning bolt only struck your wing otherwise things could've been a lot worse," she smiled down at Rainbow. "It's a good thing Spitfire was there to catch you," she added, looking gratefully at the Wonderbolt captain. Rainbow made a mental note to thank Spitfire once she'd got out of bed. Wait! That reminded her of something.

"I'm not bedridden am I, doc?" Rainbow asked hopefully. She hated being stuck in bed. The nurse shook her head.

"No, you'll be fine by morning. You just have to stay firmly on the ground for the rest of today, just to give your struck wing some time to get better. Struck wings are perfectly fine until overused, so just let it rest."

Rainbow heaved a sigh of relief, the fuzziness finally disappearing from her head. She sat up in bed and stretched, realising that she wasn't wearing her cadet uniform anymore. Somepony must have taken it off for her. She got up and shook herself, looking in the mirror on the wall. Her cheek had a band aid on it and a dark purple bruise was on her tummy. Apart from that, she was the same old Rainbow Dash. The nurse left after that after reminding Rainbow not to fly until tomorrow.

"How's about we go to the kitchen and get some pie?" Braeburn suggested. Soarin licked his lips.

"That sounds great, Brae. Race ya!" Soarin galloped out of the room and charged down the hall.

"The kitchen's the other way!" Rainbow Dash called after him. A moment later, Soarin whizzed past the door again and Rainbow rolled her eyes at his behaviour.

"I've gotta get back to my office," Spitfire excused herself, beginning to trot away. Rainbow put a hoof on the captain's shoulder.

"Nope. You're not getting out of it this time. You're gonna come to the kitchen with us whether ya like it or not, right Braeburn?" Rainbow looked over to the earth pony for back up. He shifted his eyes.

"Well…ya don't have to, but um…you could- Ah mean, err…" Rainbow raised a hoof to get him to shut up. It was a simple yes or no question.

"You could use a break," Rainbow pointed out. "Pleeeeeaaase?" she squeed, putting on a pair of puppy dog eyes that could turn a chicken hawk soft. Spitfire face hoofed.

"Ugh! If I say yes will you never do that eye thing again?" she asked, adjusting her shades. "It freaks me out a little."

"YES!"

The two mares jumped and looked over to see Braeburn jumping in the air. He became aware of their eyes on him and began trotting down the hall, grinning sheepishly and his face red. Rainbow shook her head, dismissing Braeburn's crazy behaviour.

"Is he usually that…" Spitfire fumbled to find the right word.

"Crazy?" Rainbow suggested.

"Yeah," Spitfire agreed.

"Yeah…he hangs around Soarin way too much," Rainbow chuckled. The two mares and Braeburn headed to the kitchen, where Soarin was already getting the ingredients. Rainbow headed through the door and turned to see Braeburn holding the door open for Spitfire, who gave him a nod of thanks. Braeburn closed the door but forgot to move, causing the door to slam into his head. Rainbow buried her face in a hoof, muttering something negative about the earth pony.

"Okay, let's bake, then," Braeburn put on his blue apron.

"NO!" Rainbow Dash and Soarin yelled in unison, surprising Braeburn.

"You can cook, we learnt our lesson about cooking without you yesterday," Soarin admitted, turning green at the memory. Braeburn raised a brow.

"What happened?" he asked.

"You don't wanna know," Rainbow replied, shaking her head. Braeburn shrugged it off.

"Ya wanna help, ma'am?" Braeburn asked Spitfire, who looked surprised he asked.

"Me? Oh…I don't bake," she replied, looking a little ashamed. Braeburn shook his head at her.

"Anypony can bake, ma'am. Ya just need to give it a try," he insisted. Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to say that that wasn't always true when Soarin clamped a hoof over her mouth for some reason.

"Sorry, Cowboy, I just _can't _bake," Spitfire repeated herself.

"Well at least watch, then maybe you'll change your mind?" Braeburn suggested. Spitfire looked away for a moment, before sighing and walking over to stand beside Braeburn at the counter. He looked pleased she'd decided to watch and began explaining how to make apple pie. Soarin finally took his hoof away from Rainbow's mouth allowing her to speak.

"What the hay was that for?" she asked him. Soarin chuckled, his eyes never leaving the two ponies at the counter.

"Oh…nothin'."

* * *

><p><em>Hi, everypony,<em>

_Nothing really happened today. Drills were fine although my team lost the game. There's no reason to worry about me whatsoever, so just carry on with your lives as normal._

_Yours normally, _

_Rainbow Dash._

Rainbow sighed in relief, relieved to have finished her letter. She had no intention of telling her friends what happened. She didn't even want to think about it. She flopped down on her bed after putting the letter in her saddle bags and looked over at Spring Song's empty bed.

She wished that they could just make amends, then none of this would happen. She was feeling fine now although she could feel a scar on the inside of her cheek. Rainbow got up and trotted across the room, opening up the window and sticking her head out, the night breeze ruffling her rainbow coloured mane. She could see the training grounds from here and her stomach lurched when she saw the cluster of tempest clouds. Spitfire's words from earlier about how horseshoes were never hidden up there returned and the cyan mare's suspicion grew. How did the horseshoe get up there? She had a feeling that this was no mistake. Somepony had put the horseshoe up there without Spitfire or her assistants knowing.

And she was determined to find out who.

* * *

><p><strong>Endnote: Oh my gosh! That fight scene was fun to write. This is the first time I've ever written something like that and I apologise if it wasn't all that good. Tune in next time when Soarin takes Rainbow Dash on a day around Cloudsdale to clear her head.<strong>


	10. An Intimate Trip, part 1

**Authors Note: It's time to start the big 1-0!**

**Ten chapters in two months? That's an academy record!**

**So, this chapter is the beginning of what I'd like to call the 'Golden Horseshoe Mystery' (you can tell I put a lot of thought into that name…NOT!) For the next few chapters Rainbow Dash will be trying to figure out who put the horseshoe from the last chapter into the tempest cloud cluster, causing her to get struck by lightning. I'll continue this note at the end of the chapter because at this rate my pre-chapter rants will become longer than the actual chapters.**

**So, to celebrate ten chapters of this story I figured that you guys would like to see a little more SoarinDash, so here it is. Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>"Dismissed!"<p>

Rainbow Dash felt relief wash over her as Spitfire let the cadets leave. After yesterday's events all she wanted was to flop down on her bed and take a good long nap. Her cheek was still sore from the times Spring Song had hit it and her tummy still bore that bruise, which had turned a blue colour. The cyan mare began to trot away when suddenly she was surrounded by the other cadets, who all began bombarding her with questions.

"Are you okay?"

"What happened?"

"Does it still hurt?"

Paradise slunk to the front of the group and, as if given an order, the rest of the cadet's ceased to make a sound. The green mare cleared her throat and spoke solemnly.

"I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash. I should've tried to stop you from flying into the clouds," she sniffled, hanging her head. Rainbow put a hoof on her friends shoulder.

"It's okay, Paradise, it was my fault for being such a…pea brain," Rainbow quoted Paradise, who let out a little giggle. Just then, Rainbow Dash was knocked to the floor by something heavy. Once her vision had cleared from the impact, Dash felt something hugging her tightly.

"Oh, Rainbow Dash, I was so scared when you got struck," Stargazer's hippie voice rang out, alerting Rainbow Dash that it wasn't Spring Song tackling her again. She heard a few quiet sobs and realised that they were coming from the charcoal mare. Rainbow sat up and pulled Stargazer into an embrace, letting the pegasus weep into her fur. Stargazer seemed more worried than anypony else and that surprised Rainbow.

"Hey, calm down, Stargazer. I'm fine," Rainbow stroked the mare's fluffy white mane. She noticed that Stargazer was wearing a necklace made completely out of bottle caps. She had worn a similar one yesterday and Rainbow had tried not to say anything about it. Stargazer must have some crazy hobbies.

"I know," Stargazer choked out through sobs. Smart Set flapped over to the mare. "C'mon, Stargazer, let's go to the mess hall," he assisted the mare to her hooves and led her away.

"Come on, Rainbow Dash, I'll get you a snack," Lullaby began trotting after them. The other cadets began ushering Rainbow to the door. As glad as Dash was to be the center of attention, she was still pretty confused and mad about this whole situation. Who had hidden that stupid horseshoe up there and what the hay was wrong with Spring Song. Why did she have to be so mad when Rainbow hadn't even done anything wrong?

Spring Song was at the back of the group, hanging her head making her short blonde mane dangle, hiding her face. Rainbow wanted to know what went on inside the pink mare's head. Was she sorry for what she did? Did she even care?

Rainbow Dash had so many questions, and right now she wanted answers more than anything.

* * *

><p>The only time that Braeburn wished he wasn't an earth pony was when he had to pull food out of the ovens. He couldn't use magic to lift the trays out like a unicorn, so the only tool he had was his mouth. The real trouble was grabbing the oven glove in his mouth before sticking his head in the oven to get a hold of its contents.<p>

This was what Braeburn was doing now, pulling out a blueberry pie and placing it on the windowsill to cool down. He managed not to burn his tongue this time, but he'd lost count of how many times he'd had the misfortune to do so before. Apart from that one flaw, he loved his new job, especially if it meant he could hang out with his old high school friend.

He turned away from the windowsill for a second to close the oven, relieved to have gotten the hard part of pie baking out of the way. He turned back a second later and was startled to see that the pie was gone.

"Wait- what the-" Braeburn looked left and right and groaned at what he saw. Soarin was sitting on the counter on the far side of the room, the plate of pie beside him. His mouth was full and he had blueberry juice splattered on his cheeks. They just stared eachother for a minute before Soarin spoke with a mouthful of pie.

"What?"

"Ya know that was for the cadets, right? Now Ah hafta bake another one," Braeburn scolded his friend. Soarin just shrugged and swallowed his mouthful.

"Well, that's what you're paid to do, so just keep baking," he smiled. Braeburn just shook it off, since the earth pony found it difficult to be mad at anyone. Whenever someone new came to Appaloosa he would greet them with a wide smile and plenty of enthusiasm, to show how nice his hometown was. Braeburn loved his town because it was almost completely populated by his large family. He personally thought that all towns should be like that, full of happy families.

He went to the closet where he kept all his ingredients and found another bag of flour before re-emerging and spreading a layer of the white powder on the counter top. The door suddenly creaked open and Rainbow Dash stuck her head in, the band aid under her eye must have fallen off during training because it was nowhere in sight and allowed him to see the scar it had covered. It seemed to be healing well; then again, Braeburn wasn't a doctor, so he couldn't be too sure. She looked a little worried about something.

"Hey, Soarin," the cyan mare greeted her mentor, who lit up at the sight of her. Soarin swallowed another mouthful of pie and wiped some of the blueberry juice from around his muzzle.

"Afternoon, Dash, how are you?" he asked her politely, though he winced a little at the sight of her cut. She had taken off her cadet uniform, showing off the purplish-blue bruise on her abdomen. She brushed her mane of her eyes before replying.

"I'm cool, I just needed to tell you that I'll probably be a little late for our training session," she informed the pale blue stallion, who raised a concerned eyebrow.

"How come?" he asked. Rainbow placed a hoof to the scar under her eyes and stroked it, comforting herself.

"I just wanted to go down to Spitfire's office to thank her for catching me, yesterday. I never got a chance before," she explained, taking her hoof away from her scar and instead diverting her gaze to the big bruise on her belly, pressing a hoof on it gently. Braeburn felt his cheeks ignite at the mention of the fiery maned mare. He thought back to yesterday when he had shown her how to make pie. He had assumed she'd walk off halfway through his explanation, but she had stayed there the whole time he'd talked, listening with interest. She hadn't done much talking, except a few 'okay's' or nods but Braeburn didn't really mind. At least he was brave enough to actually talk to her now. He'd discovered that once he started speaking to her it became much easier.

"No problem, Dashie, you go ahead. I'll be outside waiting for you when you're done," Soarin replied, earning a grin from Rainbow Dash.

"Thanks, Soarin, I'll be out ASAP!" she promised, turning around. Unfortunately, she didn't turn in time and bumped into the doorframe, yelping as she knocked her head on it.

"You okay?" Soarin chuckled. Rainbow laughed nervously and rubbed her head where she'd bumped it.

"I meant to do that," she insisted before dipping her head. "Okay I lied; I _didn't _mean to do that. I'm such a klutz." she admitted. "Don't laugh," she turned and bumped into the doorframe again. "UGH! When am I gonna learn?" she asked herself, still laughing. Soarin laughed along with her, even after she'd left.

"I wouldn't laugh," he said, though Braeburn was pretty sure he couldn't hear her now. "It's one of the reasons I love you."

Braeburn's ears pricked up. "What was that?" he asked Soarin, who turned to meet his friends gaze. Soarin shrugged again.

"What?" the pegasus stallion repeated the same answer from earlier. Braeburn was relieved he finally had something to tease Soarin with. He trotted over to the Wonderbolt.

"You just said that…you…" Braeburn began, only just managing to talk through his chuckles. Soarin's ears pricked up as he realised what Braeburn was getting at. He just dismissed it with a flick of his hoof.

"Oh, I just said I loved her. But, ya know, I said it chastely, like I say it to my mom," he explained. Braeburn wasn't convinced at all.

"That's where yer wrong, mah overweight friend," he prodded Soarin's tummy. "Usually, we say 'Ah love you' ta our parents in a silly way. Go on, pretend Ah'm yer mom and say ya love me," Braeburn instructed his pegasus friend, who shifted his eyes awkwardly, unsure how to respond.

"Luvoo," he said, barely audible. Braeburn raised a hoof, having got his point across.

"Ya see?" he smirked. Soarin blushed and shook his head in denial.

"I don't, because Rainbow Dash is one of my best friends and nothing more," he insisted. Soarin was a much better liar than Braeburn, so good that Braeburn was wondering if he had made a mistake after all.

"If ya say so," Braeburn shrugged. "But Ah'm pretty sure ya do, so ya should just ask 'er out," he added, returning to the counter to mush up some apples. He was relieved to finally have something to tease Soarin with. He sure wasn't gonna let this go any time soon…

"Says the guy who can barely _talk _to _his _crush," Soarin shot back.

…Much like Soarin wasn't gonna let _that _go. Braeburn flushed red again, focusing all his attention on the apples he was mushing beneath his hooves. That lasted about four seconds before he began teasing Soarin again.

"Well, if you're such an expert on this kinda thing, prove it!" Braeburn challenged the blue stallion. Soarin stood up straight.

"Ya know what, I will. I am gonna take Rainbow Dash on a day around Cloudsdale and _nothing _will happen, Wonderbolt's word," Soarin accepted, determination sparkling in his green eyes.

"You're on," Braeburn agreed, slitting his eyes. Soarin raised his hoof.

"Actually, I'm gonna add a little to the challenge," he grinned. "If I'm wrong and something _does _happen I will…fill my Wonderbolt uniform with apple sauce and fly around the track two hundred times."

Braeburn trotted into the closet again and came out a few seconds later with a few tins of apple sauce. He slammed them on the counter.

"You've got yerself a deal," the earth pony chuckled.

* * *

><p>Spitfire scrawled her signature on the last piece of paperwork and slid it to her outbox pile. She let out a silent cheer and placed her head on her desk, relieved that she'd finally finished her work and had the rest of the day to just chill out. She could really use a nap and she didn't have any work to do later, so now was the perfect time to take a couple of winks. She reclined back in her swivel chair and folded her hooves behind her head.<p>

"_All I really need is two seconds of quiet,"_ She thought, shutting her eyes and relaxing her mind.

Just then, somepony knocked at the door.

"_Ugh! I didn't mean that literally!" _she mentally yelled and sat back up in her chair, putting her professional face back on. She swore that if this was Surprise with a bunch of confetti to throw over her she'd-

"Ma'am, are you in there?"

Oh, it was just Rainbow Dash. Spitfire smiled a little as she heard the voice of her secret idol.

"Come in, Dash," she invited the blue mare inside. Rainbow Dash entered the room, wearing that classic 'Rainbow Dash Grin' of hers. She pulled up a chair and sat on the other side of Spitfire's desk. "Did ya need somethin'?" the golden mare asked the cadet, folding her arms.

"I just never got a chance to thank you for catching me yesterday, is all," Rainbow Dash shrugged. "I've never felt so useless in my life," she hung her head in shame. Spitfire felt her heart ache for the younger pegasus as she saw tears glisten in her magenta eyes. She pushed a box of tissues over to her and Rainbow grateful pulled a few out, dabbing hurriedly at her eyes. "I'm sorry, ma'am. I don't usually cry," she insisted, putting on her tough-mare face. Spitfire rolled her eyes.

"It's okay, Dash. We all cry sometimes," the fiery maned Wonderbolt reassured her friend. Rainbow looked up at that.

"Even you?" she asked. Spitfire shifted in her seat a little. She shrugged and nodded.

"Yeah…ya know… because I have allergies," she insisted. Rainbow seemed convinced at that and tossed the ball of tissues into the trash can by the side of the desk. While Rainbow was distracted with binning her soggy tissues, Spitfire let out a little sniffle. She didn't want to think about it. She _never_ wanted to think about it. The captain decided to change the subject.

"So, Rainbow Dash, what exactly happened up in the storm clouds? If ya don't wanna talk about it, I understand," she asked the rainbow maned cadet. Rainbow hesitated before replying.

"I…I just wasn't looking where I was going and that's when I was struck," she told the Wonderbolt, who raised an eyebrow.

"You sure 'bout that?" Spitfire questioned Dash. Spitfire had a built-in lie detector and she had a nagging feeling that Rainbow Dash wasn't being completely honest. "You can tell me anything, ya know? Was there somepony up there with you?"

Rainbow seemed a little startled at that. She looked away hastily. Spitfire put on a serious face and cleared her throat to make sure that Dash was paying attention to her.

"If there was somepony with you, I have to know. I was gonna announce it tomorrow in an academy assembly but you might as well know that whoever put the horseshoe up there must be punished, so right now we need as many suspects as possible," she informed Rainbow Dash. Academy assemblies were only held if there was an announcement or an emergency. Usually it was the first one, but this was most certainly an emergency. Whoever put that horseshoe up there was in BIG trouble.

"Fine, I'll tell you who was up there…but you didn't hear it from me," Rainbow decided, absentmindedly playing with her tail, which she had folded over her legs. "It was…Spring Song."

"Oh, her," Spitfire pulled open one of her desk drawers and fumbled through the folders in there. They were the cadets' reports and she'd made sure to put them in alphabetical order so she wouldn't get confused. _Rainbow Dash, Ray, Smart Set, Spring Song! _She pulled out the folder and pulled out the pink mare's application. "Okay, then let's have a looksee," Spitfire muttered. "Spring Song, aged 20, female, lives in Las Pegasus, clean record, bipolar, parents were both in the delivery service, and she suffered from a busted hoof last year," Spitfire read the application out loud.

"That explains a lot," Rainbow Dash murmured, gritting her teeth.

"What? The busted hoof explains something?" Spitfire asked. Rainbow shook her head.

"No, the bipolar part, ma'am, 'cause Spring Song has a _really_ bad attitude," the rainbow maned cadet explained. Spitfire didn't have a doubt in her mind that the two pegasi didn't get along.

"Listen up, Dash, in life there are gonna be ponies that you either get along with or don't," Spitfire gripped her pencil in her hoof as she continued her sentence. "And believe me; the ones that you don't get along with can make your life Tartarus! Equestria is full of a bunch of motherbu-" the pencil in her hoof suddenly snapped due to the fact that she was clenching it rather hard. Rainbow Dash raised a brow, clearly feeling uncomfortable. Spitfire cleared her throat and adjusted her shades, leaning back in her chair again.

"…Equestria is full of awful ponies," she finished her sentence in a more appropriate way. "But, listen to me, Dash. You can't show these ponies that you're bothered by what they do to you. Judging by that hoof shaped bruise under your eye, Spring Song really let you have it, and she will get punished for that, but for now you should just pretend she doesn't exist. Ignore. Ignore. Ignore," she repeated, wanting to jam all this into Rainbow Dash's head. "If she talks to you, Ignore. Ignore. Ignore. I know that you probably want to slap her into next week…"

Rainbow Dash nodded at this, smirking a little.

"…but no matter what she does, even if she provokes you, Ignore. Ignore. Ignore!" Spitfire said, again. "That way, she'll move on to somepony else."

Rainbow Dash stood up, determinedly. "Got it: Ignore. Ignore. Ignore!" she copied Spitfire, who stood up and hoof-bumped Dash.

"Now get outta here, Soarin's probably waitin' for you," Spitfire smiled at her blue friend. Rainbow Dash gave the captain a salute before flying out of the room.

"Yes, ma'am, thank you, ma'am!" she called over her shoulder. Spitfire closed the door and sat back at her desk, brushing the remains of her pencil into the trash can. She was glad that her pep-talk had cheered Dash up. Spitfire had had a few problems with bullies when she was a little filly, but there was always somepony there to make the world seem bright once again. She put her head in her hoof and tried to forget that last part. She was too riled up after her talk with Dash to take a nap now, so she pulled out the book she kept on the side of her desk: Anger Management for Dummies and opened it up to chapter 12: _Why Is Letting Go So Difficult?_

* * *

><p>"You have to go a little faster, Dashie!" Soarin yelled up into the sky. He never thought he'd have to tell Rainbow Dash to pick up speed. He was trying to teach her a Tornado Twirl, where a pegasus flew swiftly through the air while spinning in order to create a thin hurricane trail. When done correctly it looked pretty awesome. But for some reason Rainbow Dash didn't seem to have her head in the game today. Maybe she wasn't in the right condition to practice today. Soarin could be putting too much pressure on her. He decided to call her down.<p>

"Hey, Rainbow Dash, could you come down here a sec?" he yelled up to her. Rainbow obediently flapped down to the ground and folded her wings to her body. "Is something bothering you, Dashie? If I'm putting too much strain on that struck wing, just tell me," he told her, putting a hoof on her shoulder. Rainbow shook her head.

"Nah, I'm fine. It's just…I have a lot on my mind right now," she replied hesitantly. Soarin stood beside her and wrapped a comforting wing around her waist.

"Are you thinking about what happened yesterday?" he asked her, squeezing her a little. Rainbow Dash nodded, sitting on her hindquarters. Soarin sat down beside her and sighed. He wished there was some way to cheer her up. Then he remembered what he'd said to Braeburn earlier. "Hey, I know how to turn that frown upside down," he chirped, grinning down at her.

"What?" Rainbow asked, blowing her mane out of her eyes. Soarin stood up and spread his wings, as if he could take off at any moment.

"How would you like to go for a little trip?" he proposed. Rainbow seemed baffled by the question.

"What do you mean?" the cadet asked her mentor, standing up as well.

"We could go for a trip all over Cloudsdale. We could go to the museum, the theatre, everywhere! I'm sure that'll cheer you up," he explained. Rainbow lit up, especially when he said that he'd pay for everything they did.

"Ya mean it?" Rainbow glowed, smiling like there was no tomorrow. Soarin nodded, flapping into the air.

"Yep, I mean every word. So, let's go to the kitchen, grab some snacks and hit the road! I mean, we would hit the road if Cloudsdale _had _roads," he added, rubbing the back of his head. Rainbow flapped into the air and flew in circles around Soarin repeated her signature '_ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!'_

"This is SO AWESOME!" she squeed as she finally landed. "What are you just standing there for, let's go!" Rainbow lifted Soarin off the ground and flew him back to the mess hall. When they flew through the door into the hall, which was completely deserted except for Braeburn cleaning the tables, Rainbow still refused to put Soarin down. For all Soarin knew, Rainbow Dash could have forgotten she was actually carrying anything.

"What the hay is goin' on?" Braeburn chuckled as he saw his high school friend being lifted by the excitable mare. "Ya sure work fast, Soarin," he added in a teasing tone.

"I'll grab some stuff and then we can leave," Rainbow Dash placed Soarin down on the floor and zoomed through the kitchen and the sound of a fridge opening could be heard. Braeburn sat down on one of the chairs and put his back hooves up on another.

"So, ya never answered me. What's goin' on?" he repeated the question to Soarin, who sat beside him.

"I just invited her to go around Cloudsdale, like I said, and here we are now. You'd better put those cans of apple sauce away, buddy," Soarin replied, poking Braeburn's shoulder.

"So, ya basically asked 'er on a date," Braeburn told him. Soarin raised his hooves and scoffed.

"No way, Brae, this is _not _a date, it's an intimate trip," he corrected his earth pony friend. Braeburn chuckled and muttered _'date'_ under his breath. Soarin elbowed his old friend in the ribs.

"What'th not a date?"

Soarin turned to see Fleetfoot poking her head through the door. Braeburn snorted with laughter and nodded at Soarin. "Soarin's just asked Rainbow Dash on a date," he told the light blue Wonderbolt, who gasped with glee.

"_I did not!" _Soarin insisted, folding his arms. Why couldn't these two believe him? Fleetfoot fluttered over and sat on the other side of Braeburn, after pushing his back hooves off the seat.

"Thith ith great!" the lisping mare squealed. "You're gonna go on a bunch of dateth and then you'll get married and have a _ton _of foals and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Soarin protested, cutting Fleetfoot off. "This is not a date; this is an intimate trip and nothing more."

"Of courthe it'th a date," Fleetfoot ignored Soarin, who briefly wondered if he should use his 'invisibility' to fight crime or for evil. Fleetfoot gasped and gripped Braeburn's arm. "Maybe we thould make it a _double _date!" she squeed. Braeburn looked confused.

"Pardon?" he asked her, making Fleetfoot's eyes bulge out of her head.

"Uh… I thaid that I could be in _trouble _if I'm _late_," she lied, trying to hide a blush. Braeburn raised a brow.

"Late for what?" he asked her. Soarin laughed silently as Fleetfoot bit her lip, trying to think of a way to reply.

"Late for...lunch!" she decided. Braeburn glanced up at the clock.

"But it's four O'clock in the afternoon," he pointed out. Fleetfoot shifted her eyes, beginning to look flustered.

"I meant…an early dinner. Yeah, I'll jutht be going now," she excused herself, flapping out the door. Braeburn shrugged it off and Soarin wondered how he could be so clueless. At that moment, Rainbow Dash came back out with her saddlebags full.

"Okay I've got apples, some carrot juice, muffins and, of course, some pie," she listed the contents of her bag and Soarin licked his lips as she mentioned pie.

"Let's go, then!" the stallion smiled and headed to the door with Rainbow at her side. Luckily, Rainbow Dash didn't hear Braeburn singing '_Soarin and Rainbow Dash sitting in a tree_'. He held the door open for Rainbow Dash as they left, shooting a final warning glare at Braeburn. He closed the door roughly to show the Appaloosan that he meant business before turning to Dash.

"All set?" he checked with her. Rainbow Dash nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course!" she smiled. The two pegasi flapped into the air and headed out to begin their date.

It's not a date! IT'S AN INTIMATE TRIP!

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><p><strong>Endnote: Okay, this chapter was dragging on a little, so I decided to split it into two parts. Nothing really happens in this chapter and I apologise for that but hopefully you'll be satisfied by Dash and Soarin's 'Intimate Trip' in the next chapter. <strong>

**Anyway, like I said at the start, this is the start of the 'Golden Horseshoe Mystery' arc. To save metaphorical breath I'm just gonna call it the GHM arc. Over the next few chapters there will be a few hints as to who the possible culprits are. Since the Academy Assembly will be in chapter 12, more details will be posted there.**

**One last thing, I would LOVE for you to PM me your theories on who put the horseshoe in the cloud cluster. I'm not gonna tell anyone whodunit (who did it), but I really wanna know what you think. So, put on your mystery hats my friends because you're gonna need them. **

**See ya in chapter 11!**


	11. An Intimate Trip, part 2

**YAY! NEW COVER!**

**Authors note: Just a quick one this time, because I know how easily I can start ranting. In this MLP universe Equestria has more advanced technology than it does in the actual series. You have no idea how many times I've had such good ideas that involve modern technology. I mean, I know they're ponies but- *RANT ALERT*!**

**Oopsie. Okay, on with part two of **_**'An Intimate Trip'**_**!**

RosaSilvermist- I'm glad I changed your opinion about SoarinDash. Whenever I read that someone loves my story I jump up and do this little dance. (Meh, I'm a little crazy).

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><p>"So, what do ya want?" Soarin asked Rainbow Dash as they sat across the table from one another. They were at the local hayburger and, as usual, it was buzzing with customers. A few had come over to ask Soarin for his autograph and even asked Rainbow Dash for some, too. The rainbow maned mare seemed to love the attention she was getting. They had already given their order to the mare serving the customers and they had nothing to do now but wait. Soarin gasped when he saw something on the far side of the room.<p>

"Oh my gosh, CRAYONS!" he squeed, zooming over to grab some and surprising a few fillies and colts. They seemed a little aghast that there was a grown up over there. He returned to the table with crayons of every colour of the rainbow and a large colouring book. Rainbow shifted her eyes awkwardly.

"Um…Soarin, aren't you a little old for that?" she asked him, using her menu to hide her face. Soarin gasped and looked at Rainbow Dash as if she'd just told him she was a murderer.

"You are _never _too old for crayons, Dashie, _**NEVER!**__" _he told her, clutching his colouring book to his chest. Rainbow shrugged and put the menu back down on the table. She may have been hanging out with a childish stallion, but this was not an ordinary stallion, this was a childish _Wonderbolt_!

"Here you go," the waitress from behind the counter appeared and put their meals in front of them. Soarin had ordered a large box of horseshoe fries and an even bigger carrot cola and Rainbow Dash had ordered the largest burger on the menu and a huge vanilla milkshake. The waitress eyed Soarin and his crayons. "Um…do you want some more crayons?" she asked in a sugary sweet voice that she only used around foals. Soarin nodded enthusiastically.

"Yes please, ma'am," he grinned as he began colouring in a rocket ship. The waitress headed over to the table with the crayons and returned with a small packet of them.

"Here you go," she said in that sweet voice again. "Please don't eat them," she added as if she were talking to a little colt. Soarin didn't seem to care and eagerly opened the box. Rainbow chowed down on her burger while Soarin coloured and crunched on his fries. Soarin finished colouring in his rocket and after staring at it proudly for a few seconds he folded it up and put it in the pocket of his officer's uniform. He looked over at Rainbow Dash who was wiping some ketchup from around her mouth. She was a messy eater, but then again so was he. He continued munching on his horseshoe fries whilst observing Dash with one eye. He noticed that aside from wiping mayo and stuff off her face from time to time she didn't really care about how messy she ate. She didn't even wipe her face with the napkins they had been given; she just used her hoof. Soarin knew that a lot of mares liked to have really good manners, but Soarin didn't see why. Who were they trying to impress? Personally, Soarin didn't give a flying feather about manners; he actually found them quite irritating.

"Soarin?"

The Wonderbolt co-captain's thoughts were interrupted by Rainbow Dash, who had almost finished her burger. She was looking at him with one eyebrow raised.

"What?" Soarin asked her simply.

"You were just staring at me," she replied. "It's a little weird," she added. Soarin hadn't realising he'd been staring at her until now. He cleared his throat and returned to gulping down his fries.

"Sorry," he apologised, mentally scolding himself. It was rude to stare at mares. _"Great, now _you're _the one concerned with manners," _he thought, realising he was going against the thought he'd had while staring at Dash. The two of them ate their food in silence for a few minutes. Soarin began slurping down his carrot cola and was about halfway through it when he heard Rainbow Dash groan. He looked over to her and saw that she was clutching her head in pain.

"Holy Celestia, Dashie, what's wrong?" Soarin exclaimed, feeling a wave of protectiveness for the cyan cadet. Rainbow tapped her head and squeaked out.

"Brain freeze!"

Soarin noticed that there was vanilla milkshake dribbling out the corner of Rainbow's mouth, so that explained that. Soarin felt relieved that this was nothing more than an ice cream headache and returned to his seat, Rainbow Dash recovering from her brain freeze a few moments after. Soarin knew how painful a brain freeze could be, especially after one time at an air show when he'd challenged Rapidfire to a slush-drinking-race at the after party. He'd been in the lead until his brain suddenly began to feel like ice and he'd fallen to the ground screaming. Not only did he have to be carried out of the party but Rapidfire beat him in the drinking race. It was a lose-lose thing.

Soarin let out a loud belch as he finished the last of his cola and Rainbow Dash burst out laughing. Soarin found himself laughing along with her. Burps were just so darn hilarious!

"You call that a burp?" Rainbow Dash asked the stallion. "Check this out," she breathed in before releasing an even louder burp. Soarin almost fell out of his seat with laughter. He'd been out-burped, that was certain.

"Nice one, he complimented her, wiping his eyes since he'd been laughing so hard. By that time, Rainbow was almost done with her milkshake, and Soarin was sucking up the last droplets of his soda. When there was nothing left in the cup, he kept on slurping, just to make that funny noise. Rainbow later joined in the slurping once she had finished her milkshake. After several minutes of slurping, the waitress from earlier marched over and ordered them to leave. Turns out, they were disturbing the other customers. Soarin looked around the food place and sure enough, most of the ponies in there were giving him and Rainbow Dash dirty looks. After they had left, they headed off to their next location: the movie theatre.

"I remember going to the Cloudsdale Cineplex when I was a little filly," Rainbow Dash recalled as they flew. "I never knew a screen could be so big!"

"You're lucky, Dash. When I was a colt, I never went to the movies. Thought, I remember my dad once told me about a time when _he _went to the Cineplex to see _An Officer and a Gentlecolt_."

Rainbow scoffed a little. "Whoa, that's an old movie," she commented, though Soarin couldn't tell whether she was talking to him or just thinking out loud.

"But it's still a cool one," he assured Rainbow Dash. They arrived at the Cineplex and walked in. Almost immediately, Soarin was completely mobbed by fans. After fighting them off and, of course, giving out some autographs, he trotted over to Rainbow, who at some point during the 'attack' had sat down on a plush orange couch with a magazine.

"You okay?" Rainbow asked him, not raising her gaze from her magazine. Soarin nodded and sat beside her.

"Yeah, I'm good. I almost got flattened and my pen hoof has a cramp but apart from that- ONE OF THEM STOLE MY TIE!"

Rainbow snorted with laughter. "Don't you enjoy being swarmed by rabid fans wherever you go?" she asked him. Soarin let out a half-hearted laugh and slumped lower into the couch, allowing himself to sink into it a little.

"You wouldn't think it was so cool if _your _mane looked like this," he pointed at his spiked mane, which was now ruffled from the fans attempts to pull out some of his hair. Why did they even do that? Suddenly a (crazy) thought entered his mind. What if they were planning to _clone_ him?!

"Hey, how about we see this movie?" Rainbow Dash interrupted his nightmare of a whole bunch of Soarin's. The pale blue pegasus looked at the magazine Rainbow was reading ad discovered it was a guide to what movies were being shown. Soarin had heard good things about the movie she was referring to: The Colt in Our Stars. Apparently it was supposed to be the best selling movie here. Soarin enthusiastically agreed and went to buy their tickets. Since it was most popular movie here, it was also the most expensive, but Soarin had promised Rainbow Dash that he'd pay for everything, and if there was one thing Soarin didn't do, it was break his promises. He brought a tub of popcorn for each of them and led Rainbow Dash into their screening room, Room 7, and they sat in the eighth row. Soarin personally wanted to sit at the very front, where viewers were able to sit on these huge beanbags to watch the movie, but according to the usher, whom Soarin had an argument with about the subject, if it wasn't on your ticket, you couldn't sit there. _"Stupid rules," _Soarin cursed in his head, before moving along the eighth row, so he and Rainbow could sit in the middle, where it had the best view of the screen. The place was packed with ponies of all colours and sizes, though there were no young fillies or colts since this was a PG-13 movie. A stallion with a large tub of nachos sat beside Soarin, and a couple of chatting teenage mares sat beside Rainbow Dash. A young stallion with a soda sat behind Soarin and immediately began slurping his drink obnoxiously loudly.

"When does it start?" Rainbow Dash asked Soarin after they had been sitting in the room for ten minutes. Soarin needed not reply because as soon as the last syllable escaped her mouth, the lights dimmed and the huge screen began playing the commercials.

Soarin personally hated the commercials before the movie because they always showed ones for other movies. He'd been to the Cineplex several times in the past few years and he had started to notice that all the commercials or previews as they were called when a movie was being advertised, gave away the ending. He remembered when the Wonderbolts had gone to the movies after an air show one time a few years ago and Spitfire had refused to go. When asked why she'd replied: '_Because I don't feel like paying thirty bits to sit in a dark room for two hours watching ponies chew with their mouths open and dealing with foals kicking the back of my seat!'_

Soarin began to see the cons of having somepony sitting right behind you. The stallion sitting behind him put his back hooves on the top of Soarin's seat. He decided to just go with it, since no harm was being done. The commercials were almost finished now and they were showing an ad for 3D glasses. Soarin also remembered how Spitfire had reacted that same day when she'd been told the Wonderbolts were going to see a 3D movie. She'd grumbled and told them: _'3D does _not _make your movie any better, it just makes it _closer! _If I wanted to see 3-Dimensional things, I would just go outside!"_

The movie finally started after the last advertisement and some brief opening credits. About twenty minutes into the movie, Soarin was pretty hooked. It had seemed a little depressing at the very beginning but picked up a little later. He became aware of some irritating noise coming from his left side. He looked to see the stallion with the nachos crunching loudly on his snack. Soarin shook it off and went back to watching the movie, but now that he'd noticed the crunching he couldn't seem to focus on anything else. Soarin prodded the stallion, who turned his head to address Soarin.

"What is it?" he asked the Wonderbolt.

"Sorry, but would you mind chewing your nachos a little quieter, please sir?" Soarin felt like it was a pretty dumb question, but right now he wanted to watch the movie without a single distraction. The stallion nodded and managed to crunch a lot quieter. Perfect.

"So, like, who's he?"

Soarin looked over Rainbow Dash to the two teenage mares from earlier. One was hot pink with a blue and white mane in a high ponytail, while the other was white with a yellow and pink checkered mane.

"He's one of the teachers from the support group," the white one said to the pink one. Soarin immediately realised that she was wrong and leaned over Rainbow Dash to correct her.

"No, no, he's not the teacher, there was only one teacher, he's the one who's going blind," Soarin explained to them. The two mares nodded in thanks and Soarin leaned back in his chair, resuming eating his popcorn. After about ten minutes, Soarin felt something hit the side of his head. "Hey, what gives?" he groaned, rubbing his sore head. Turns out, the stallion sitting behind him had tried to swat a fly with his back hoof and kicked Soarin.

"Er…sorry dude," he apologized, putting his hooves on his seat where they belonged and slurping his soda. Soarin exhaled and turned his attention back to the movie. It had just got to the part where the two main characters go to Amsterdam* when the two mares began speaking again.

"What's happening now?" the pink mare asked her friend, looking up from her phone. Soarin would have given the mare a stern look if it wasn't too dark for her to see him. Maybe if she stopped texting and paid attention, she wouldn't have to ask!

"They're going to Amsterdam to buy a book," the white mare replied, rolling her eyes. Soarin face hoofed. Why was this filly explaining it wrong? He leaned across Rainbow Dash once again, aware of the cyan pegasus grunting as he knocked her popcorn a little.

"No, they're going to Amsterdam to track down the mysterious author of the book who disappeared after its publication," he corrected her once again. Soarin leaned back to his own seat, once again knocking Rainbow Dash's popcorn and even spilling a little in his mane. "Oh, thanks," he said to Dash, plucking the pieces of popcorn from his hair and throwing them into his mouth. Just when Soarin thought that he'd be able to watch the movie in peace, he heard this terrible noise that made him jump clear out of his seat. Rainbow Dash fumbled for her popcorn as Soarin knocked the bucket from her hooves and skilfully caught it, glaring up at Soarin with dagger-like eyes. He mouthed 'sorry' and sat back down in his seat, trying to figure out what the heck that noise was.

SLLLUUUUURRRRP!

Soarin looked behind him. That dude with the soda was doing the same slurping thing that he and Rainbow Dash were doing back at the Hayburger.

SLLLLLUUUUUUUURRRRRP!

Soarin was beginning to see how you could become irritated with this kind of thing. He fixed his eyes on the screen and did his best to ignore the Hannibal Lecter noises gnawing away at his brain. By now the movie had reached the point where the two main characters were being sent away by the author.

SLUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRP!

"SHUT UP!" Soarin stood up on his chair and put his hooves on the back of his chair and staring angrily at the stallion, who dropped his soda with fright. It was a good thing looks couldn't kill.

"Is there a problem, sirs?"

Soarin looked to the side to see the usher from before, looking pretty un-amused at Soarin's outburst. Soarin sat back down in his seat and folded his arms, mumbling grumpily.

"No, everything's under control," he replied, shooting an uncharacteristically harsh glower behind him at the stallion, who had sunk lower in his seat. The usher rolled his eyes and trotted away, mumbling something about hating his job. Soarin looked over at Rainbow Dash, who had her face buried in her hooves mumbling 'why me?'

The rainbow maned mare tapped Soarin on the shoulder, whispering his name. Soarin shifted his eyes to the side to meet hers.

"Soarin, please don't make a scene," Rainbow Dash silently pleaded. "I'd appreciate it if we didn't get thrown out of here."

"We won't get thrown out, Dash, it's just some ponies can irritate you to the point of insanity," Soarin hissed his reply, fighting the urge to give the surrounding ponies menacing stares. Rainbow Dash blinked a couple of times before raising her brows in confusion.

"Who are you and what have you done with Soarin?" she asked, smirking slightly before turning to stare at the screen again. Soarin awkwardly sat through the…*hmm hmm* scene and then began to feel a little depressed when the main stallion announced he was going to die. When the stallion was dying in hospital and Soarin was on the verge of tears-

"What just happened?"

Soarin grumbled as that annoying pink mare piped up again. Soarin had never realised just how annoying somepony's voice could be. It was kind of like listening to an alarm clock first thing in the morning: plain irritating! That stupid white mare answered her friend.

"I think she gave him her cancer when they-"

"NO!" Soarin piped up not wanting to think about that scene. The surrounding ponies all looked over at him and Rainbow Dash raised a hoof.

"I have no idea who this guy is," she lied before burying her face in her popcorn bucket, which was almost completely empty by now. Soarin quickly sat down before the usher could notice the commotion. He leaned over Rainbow Dash again to talk to the two (pesky) mares.

"If you two were paying the slightest bit of attention, you would know that he already _had_ cancer…" he began mimicking the two mares' voices. "…and FYI, cancer can't be passed on like that!" he then sat back in his chair and watched the movie through slitted eyes. He was beginning to see why Spitfire hated going to the movies. Next time he wanted to watch something, he would do what any normal pony would and rent a darn movie!

After that, everything remained quiet, and Soarin found his usual good mood returning. He didn't usually snap like that…at all, but he felt a little on edge at the moment, not that he knew why. Once the movie ended, Soarin had tears rolling down his cheeks and he wondered how Rainbow Dash could stay so straight-faced. She must be made of stone or something. Soarin and Rainbow Dash left the Cineplex, one snivelling, one whistling. They leaned against the wall of the building where Rainbow Dash broke into a rant about the movie and how she was relieved Soarin didn't get the two of them banned for life.

"You okay, Soarin?" Rainbow asked the co-captain after she'd finished talking, noticing for the first time that he was sniffling. Soarin wiped his nose with a hoof.

"Yeah, it's just a stupid movie, I just get emotional easily," he admitted, biting his lip in embarrassment. Rainbow rolled her eyes and put a hoof on Soarin's shoulder.

"Don't worry 'bout it…we all cry sometimes," Rainbow chuckled as she said that, though Soarin had no idea that she was quoting Spitfire's earlier statement. "Ya know, putting your descent into madness aside, that was actually pretty fun," Rainbow smiled up at Soarin, who nodded.

"Yeah, it was," he agreed. Despite his irritation with the other viewers, he had genuinely enjoyed himself. He always enjoyed himself when he was with Dashie.

Soarin suddenly realised that it was true: he loved being with Rainbow Dash. He felt different when he was with her. He felt more energetic and smiled easier, probably because she liked to smile a lot too. She seemed to bring out a less professional, carefree side to him, which was something that most ponies couldn't do. He loved how he would feel an ecstasy of joy when she walked into a room, how her eyes would glow when he congratulated her on a fantastic flight, how his chest lurched whenever she told him he was awesome.

Soarin's brain buzzed as realization slammed into him like a wrecking ball.

Could he…_like _Rainbow Dash?

"Soarin, anypony in there?"

Soarin hadn't realized he'd drifted into thought until a blue hoof began waving in front of his face. He shook his head to get his mind working again. Rainbow Dash was gazing at him with obvious concern.

"Oh yeah, I'm…I'm right here," Soarin replied, suddenly feeling warm from head to tail. Rainbow gave him one of those huge grins and enthusiastically spread her wings, as if about to take off.

"So, where to now?" she asked him. Soarin gave her the one answer he could think of right now.

"Anywhere."

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><p>"Tho, he really thaid that he'd fly around the track with hith thuit full of apple thauce if he felt anything for Rainbow Dathh?"<p>

Braeburn nodded in response to Fleetfoot's question. He was taking a fifteen minute break and the white maned mare had been with him in the kitchen the entire time, just sitting in the seat next to his. Fleetfoot let out a chortle.

"I hereby announce Thoarin to be the Chief Drama Maker of Cloudthdale," she announced, throwing her hooves into the air for dramatic effect. "I'll have to properly give him his title when he gets back."

"How?" Braeburn asked her, unsure of where the cheeky mare's plan was headed. Fleetfoot's eyes darted around the room and she jumped up when she saw something on the counter. She grabbed a large baguette and held it above her head.

"I gueth I could knight him with this or thomething," she shrugged. Braeburn chuckled at her plan. He'd learned that Fleetfoot was a pretty random pony from time to time. Just then, the door creaked open and Soarin entered, wearing a small smile.

"Afternoon, Prince of the Pies," Fleetfoot greeted Soarin as he walked over to them. "How'd it go?" she widened her eyes until Braeburn was sure they'd pop out. Soarin gulped and chuckled nervously. Braeburn knew that look on his face. Soarin always made that face when he'd done something wrong. The earth pony face-hoofed and looked up at Soarin with exasperation.

"Aw no, Soar, what did ya do?" he asked his friend, unsure of what to expect. Soarin sighed and glanced over to the table that Braeburn and Fleetfoot were sitting at. He trotted over and grabbed something that was on it. Braeburn's jaw dropped and Fleetfoot gasped when they saw what he was holding.

The tin of apple sauce.

"What're ya doin' with that?" Braeburn asked, blinking rapidly. Soarin flushed red, a feature that Braeburn got on _his _face almost constantly these days. The Wonderbolt stallion began heading out the door, looking over his shoulder at his friends as he left.

"I'm going to find my Wonderbolt's uniform, of course. I've got a track to fly around."

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><p><strong>Endnote: Holy Celestia that chapter was hard to write. I never knew how hard it was to write a chapter where almost nothing happens! I'm not particularly proud of this chapter but I'm glad that Soarin had his epiphany.<strong>

***Dam- A dam means the mother of a foal.**

**That's one thing I can be proud of in this chapter because I don't think Amsterdam has been invented in the MLP universe yet. SWEET LUNA, I INVENTED A COUNTRY IN EQUESTRIA! *squee*.**

**Stay tuned for chapter 12, where the Academy Assembly is held and the search for the culprit of the GHM (Golden Horseshoe Mystery) continues. (Don't forget to PM me your theories on whodunit if you haven't yet).**

**Merry Christmas, everyone!**


	12. Academy Assembly

Captain Alaska- I'll try and find some way to weave Top Bolt into this story (I actually don't know why I didn't use it in the last one).

YoungBlood23- I'm glad you love my story *does happy dance*. Sorry, got carried away. :D

RosaSilvermist- Merry (late) Christmas to you, too! Have some *cyber cake*.

**Hey, everyone. Hope you had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. What was the best thing you got for Christmas this year and do you have any New Year's Resolutions?**

**I've got three resolutions this year:**

**Work out more.**

**Spend more time with family.**

**Begin writing an **_**actual **_**novel. (It could happen…maybe…)**

**Anyway, here's the first chapter of 2015. It sounds weird saying that. 2014 went by too fast!**

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><p>"I'm sure that all of you already know about the incident that occurred two days ago."<p>

The fourteen cadets stood in single file in the Main Hall, listening to Spitfire addressing them. Rainbow Dash stood with her head lowered, not wanting to look up at the mare who was telling the entire academy about the 'Horseshoe Incident'. She tried her best to block out the sounds around her to no avail. She stood in the line between Lullaby and Sugar Swoop; the former had placed a comforting hoof on Rainbow's shoulder while the latter looked down at her sympathetically. Rainbow glanced over at Spring Song to find that the pink mare was already looking at her. They locked eyes for several seconds as If they thought they could shoot each other down if they looked long enough. Eventually Rainbow Dash looked away, cursing in her mind.

The Wonderbolts were all lined up behind Spitfire, while the rest of the academy staff stood along the side of the wall. Braeburn looked over at Dash from his spot beside Feather Duster the janitor and gave her a small smile, which Rainbow Dash returned. The least she could do in this situation was smile.

Rainbow looked from cadet to cadet, wondering if it was one of them who hid that stupid horseshoe in the cloud. It could be someone on the other team. She looked at the cadets on the silver team: Bumble, Spring Song, Ray, Butternut, Lullaby, Stains and Cinder. If they were responsible, they had pretty good poker faces. Rainbow Dash knew better than to start suspecting somepony without evidence (Pinkie Pie had taught her that lesson) and she realised that she was completely clueless. Right now, the culprit could be almost anypony.

"On Monday, a cadet who shall remain nameless-"

"_What's the point in saying that? Everypony already knows it was me," _Rainbow Dash thought huffily, feeling dozens of eyes trained on her.

"-was struck in the Cloud Cluster while searching for a horseshoe in the Horseshoe Hunting exercise. Well, you should all know by now that the Tempest Clouds are pretty dangerous and because of that, horseshoes are _never _hidden up there," Spitfire explained. "The pony who is responsible for this will be punished in a manner consistent with the severity of the reason for their crime."

Rainbow looked around and saw the cadets looking anxiously round at eachother, most likely wondering which one of them was a criminal. She even saw some of the Wonderbolts and staff looking around at eachother. It suddenly occurred to Dash that the culprit was so mysterious; it might not have even been a cadet. All of this was making her head hurt.

"In addition, anypony found to have knowledge of these events, who fails to speak up, will also be punished," Spitfire added, scanning the assembled cadets with that fiery gaze of hers. "So, if any of you know anything about this, step forward now," Spitfire was silent for a minute, waiting for somepony to come clean. Rainbow Dash looked down the line, left and right and saw that the other cadets seemed to be doing the same. It didn't look like anypony was going to say anything. Spitfire adjusted her shades before giving the cadets her usual serious glare.

"Very well, then. If you prefer to tell me what you know in private, my door is always open. There's also going to be a box outside my office that you can put an anonymous tip into if you want. Dismissed," Spitfire nodded at the cadets in farewell and the pegasi departed the hall. Rainbow walked beside Lullaby, Sugar Swoop and Butternut.

Butternut began ranting as soon as they left the room. "So who do you think did it guys? I read a lot of mystery novels, so I know that you have to look for clues; hey, maybe the Wonderbolts could get a detective to come to the academy to figure it out 'cause I've always wanted to meet one *GASP* maybe I could be his sidekick and then I could have one of those fun hats and-"

"Butternut," Lullaby prodded the excitable peanut butter coloured mare.

"Yes?" Butternut smiled at her fellow cadet.

"Stop," was all Lullaby said. Butternut shrugged and agreed to be quiet, which was a rare thing. "You okay, Rainbow?" Lullaby asked Rainbow Dash, who hadn't really spoken all day.

"Uh…yeah I'm good," Rainbow Dash replied letting her wings droop. As much as she'd enjoyed her day out with Soarin yesterday, she had become pretty depressed when she remembered that the Academy Assembly was being held that day. She hated being viewed as a victim. She didn't want to be felt sorry for, she didn't want anyone to be sympathetic, she was Rainbow Dash, and she showed no weaknesses!

"Whoever did this is a real jerk," Sugar Swoop muttered through gritted teeth. "They should be thrown in Cloudsdale prison."

Lullaby piped up from the other side of Rainbow Dash. "Actually, Swoop, I don't think you can get thrown in jail for something like that." Sugar Swoop raised an eyebrow at his friend.

"Lullaby, it was an incident that could have cost Dash her life…" he trailed off as he noticed Rainbow Dash's now colourless face. "…uh…sorry, Rainbow Dash, but anyway, it was still a dangerous act and something as severe as getting another pegasus struck by lightning is worthy of a three year prison sentence," the peach stallion explained. It was Lullaby's turn to look baffled.

"How in Celestia's name do you know that?" she asked him. Sugar Swoop just shrugged.

"Well, I used to want to be a Canterlot royal guard but…I didn't make the grade," he revealed. "I had to know a lot about the law but apparently that wasn't good enough."

"Maybe it was because of your fur," Butternut suggested. Sugar Swoop looked down at his peachy fur.

"My fur?" he echoed her. "What's wrong with my fur?"

"Haven't you noticed that all the royal guards seem to have either white or dark grey fur?" Butternut replied. Rainbow Dash butted into the conversation.

"Not true, guys. I've met a guard with orange fur once," she told them, remembering that stallion, Flash something, that Twilight bumped into. He had certainly looked out of place amongst the other guards. Sugar Swoop looked smugly at Butternut.

"See, fur doesn't matter," he insisted, smirking. "What were we talking about again?"

"Prison sentences," Lullaby reminded him. Rainbow raised a hoof to stop them.

"Guys, you can keep talking about this, but I'm gonna go get a snack," she told them, not wanting to talk about the horseshoe thing anymore. The other three cadets agreed that she could leave and bidded her farewell before heading off again, resuming their conversation. Rainbow Dash sat on her haunches and patted her tummy, realising that she wasn't even hungry. There was no point in hanging out with Soarin and Braeburn, because they were still in the Main Hall since a meeting was being held in there right after the Assembly.

She decided to just wander the halls until the meeting was over, since there wasn't much else for her to do. She walked straight past the kitchen, the bathroom and the dorms until she reached Spitfire's office. Sure enough that anonymous tip box was out there as promised. Rainbow really wanted to open it up to see if anypony had posted something in in, but since it required a key to open it, that wasn't possible.

"Hi, Rainbow Dash, what's up?"

Rainbow looked up from the box to see Bumble and Cinder behind her. Rainbow suddenly remembered Spring Song's outburst at Cinder and felt a stab of pity for the little blue pegasus pony.

"Hey, Cinder, you're not too shaken up after Spring Song yelled at you, are you?" Dash asked her. Cinder looked up at Rainbow Dash with those big brown eyes of hers that could make a fully grown dragon go soft.

"N-n-no, I'm okay," she stammered, looking down at the floor, making her pigtails flop over her head. Rainbow Dash felt so sorry for the small mare that it stung! She was just so innocent and sweet; Spring Song was a huge monster for chewing her out like that. It was like shouting at a little lost kitten.

"Well, I feel like I should do something, so…do ya wanna hang out?" Rainbow Dash offered Cinder and Bumble. Cinder looked up in surprise, one of her pigtails falling back into place while the other still hung limply over one of her eyes.

"R-really? _You_ wanna hang out with _me_?" Cinder pointed at herself, looking at Rainbow Dash like she'd grown a second head. Rainbow Dash nodded down at her.

"Sure, why not? You seem like a cool pony to chill with. You too, Bumble," Dash replied. Bumble beamed proudly, while Cinder's jaw dropped. She stayed frozen like that for a while before finally getting her senses back. She looked awkwardly down at the floor.

"Nopony has ever called me _cool _before," she admitted shuffling her hooves, looking like she wished she hadn't said that. Rainbow lifted up the blue mare's head.

"Well, they're crazy, 'cause I know you're a cool pony, Cinder. Ya just need to make it a little clearer. For starters, you can stop staring at the floor," Rainbow Dash told her.

"Heh…sorry," Cinder let her head dip down again.

"Uh, uh, uh," Rainbow tutted at Cinder, roughly lifting her head up again to show that she meant what she was saying. "You're doing it again," she added, and Cinder chuckled. Rainbow began heading down the hall.

"Now, c'mon, let's go outside. Drills were cancelled today 'cause of the stupid Assembly, so we have all day to do whatever we want. So, how's about we race through those hoops? That way we'll have an advantage when we have to do an exercise on them?" Dash suggested. Bumble enthusiastically trotted down the hall after her rainbow maned friend.

"You can count me in," she agreed. Cinder followed after, having to walk a little faster due to her shorter legs.

"Sounds like fun," she smiled cheerfully, making Rainbow Dash feel proud of herself. The Academy Assembly had made Dash think that it would be a pretty depressing day, but maybe now, with these two friends of hers, today wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

><p>"Braeburn, you in here?" Soarin called out as he walked into the kitchen. The lights were on and he could hear the whir of the air conditioning, so somepony must either be in here or have just left. When there was no reply, Soarin made his way to a stool beside an oven and hauled himself onto it? Why does a stool have to be so tall? (THAT RHYMED!)<p>

Soarin rested his head on the counter and just stared straight ahead at the wall. He was pretty tired because he'd been up all night trying to figure out his newfound feelings for Rainbow Dash (and getting apple sauce out of his fur). It felt right and wrong at the same time. Right because they were so alike and seemed like a pretty ordinary pair, but wrong because he was her mentor. It would be odd for him to have affections for his 'student'. All of this was just so confusing! He wanted to ask someone about this but he didn't know anyone who was an expert on this kind of thing. He had come into the kitchen hoping to just talk to Braeburn about all this but he wasn't even here! UGH!

The Wonderbolt co-captain cursed under his breath and closed his eyes. Putting all his worries aside, all he really wanted to do was sleep. Maybe things would seem clearer once he'd had a nap. Yes, all he needed was a little bit of shut-eye and everything would make sense. Soarin took one heavy breath and relaxed, feeling peaceful for the first time since he'd got back from his 'Intimate Trip' with Rainbow Dash.

HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK!

"GAH!" Soarin jolted up in alarm and flapped high into the air, bonking his head on the ceiling. He crashed to the ground, having lost his focus and lay sprawled on his back, staring up at the spinning room. He was aware of somepony laughing and he tilted his head to the side, catching sight of a light blue pony rolling on the floor, cackling with laughter. Soarin growled and sat up, rubbing his head to try and get his eyes back into focus. He didn't want his eyes to be crossed like that mail mare, Derpy's.

"Fleetfoot, what the heck was that for?" Soarin bellowed at the guffawing mare, who sat up and wiped a tear from her eye with one hoof, the other hoof clutching an air horn.

"Heh…I couldn't resitht. You jutht looked tho peaceful," she lisped, trying (and failing) to supress her laughter. Soarin stood up and glared at his friend.

"I can't believe you can be so cruel," he scolded her. Fleetfoot shrugged her shoulders.

"Can ya blame me? I thaw you there looking all relaxed and I happened to have an air horn with me. You'd do the thame," Fleetfoot told Soarin, who was irritated to admit she was right.

"Yes, that and you were obviously in here when I called out to see if there was anypony here!" the blue stallion added, folding his hooves in frustration. Fleetfoot shook her head.

"Actually, you were here before me, I just flew in over the counter, tho that'th why you didn't hear the door," she explained, nodding at the counter where the food was served. Soarin followed her gaze and raised an eyebrow at her.

"I really hope none of your feathers came off and landed in the trays," he muttered, almost gagging as he thought of swallowing a feather. He'd done that as couple of times while preening his wings and that was _not _a pleasant experience. Fleetfoot gave Soarin a smug look and sat down on the stool he was on a minute ago before she'd blasted his brains out.

"There's no chance of my feathers falling in the trayth. Ya know why, Thoarin, because I can command my feathers to thtay in," she explained, leaning against the counter coolly. That'th right: I have complete control over my wings."

"Howdy, guys," Braeburn poked his head through the door and smiled as he saw two of his friends.

POMF

Soarin snorted with laughter as Fleetfoot's wings opened up. The sight of the blue mare, leaning against the counter with her wings like that and a red face was _priceless!_

"Yep, _totally _under control," Soarin teased Fleetfoot, who shot him an angry glower. Braeburn was totally confused.

"You okay, Fleetfoot?" he questioned the embarrassed pegasus, who folded her arms behind her head and put on a nonchalant grin.

"Yep, I'm fine," she lied. "Jutht thtretching my wings."

"Okay then. So, Soarin, how're ya feelin'?" Braeburn made his way over to Soarin and stood before him. "Ya know, with the whole Rainbow Dash thing?"

Soarin was surprised that Braeburn was asking him about all this and he suddenly felt guilty. Braeburn had enough on his plate with his Spitfire problem, but yet he was still helping Soarin with his Rainbow Dash problem. Soarin suddenly found himself wishing that he'd paid more attention to his friend's dilemma.

"Everything's fine, Brae, don't worry about me. I can deal with this on my own," Soarin decided to say, not wanting to force his friend to help him with any of his predicaments. "How are _you _doing?"

Braeburn shrugged. "Ah'm fine. Been workin' on a new recipe: Apple Cinnamon Crips-"

"Not those problems," Soarin interrupted him. "Ya know…" he mouthed 'Spitfire' and Braeburn immediately turned a shade pinker. He awkwardly looked away.

"Nothin'. Ah haven't talked to 'er since Ah repaired that machine," he shrugged again. One thing Soarin noticed was that he and Braeburn seemed to react differently to these kinds of things. Soarin didn't feel all that embarrassed about it, just confused, while Braeburn seemed to be both. Everytime 'She' was mentioned, Braeburn would turn red and become flustered. But then again, they were dealing with two very different kinds of issues. Rainbow Dash and Spitfire were very similar in that they were dedicated to flying and were both the two best flyers in Equestria, but it was the _stallions _that made their situations so different. Soarin and Rainbow Dash were so similar: they were both great flyers, shared a lot of the same interests, and were naturally great friends. But Braeburn and Spitfire were just such…opposites! Braeburn was happy, optimistic, cheerful, polite, caring and easy to get along with while Spitfire was a loner, a pessimist, strict, serious about work, a little grumpy and it was pretty difficult to get on her good side. It pained Soarin to know that the two had pretty much nothing in common, but he knew not to judge at first glance, after all he'd heard that opposites attract.

"Are you sure?" Soarin raised a brow, wanting to offer as much help as possible to his friend. Braeburn nodded his head.

"Eeyup, everythin's under control," the earth pony confirmed, though judging by his tone he was trying to convince himself as much as Soarin. Soarin put a hoof on his friends shoulder.

"Are you sure you don't want me to help you out, buddy?" he asked. "Maybe I could be your wingpony?" he suggested, though Braeburn looked absolutely mortified at the thought.

"No, Soarin. Ah think that's takin' it too far," he admitted. Soarin agreed, maybe being a wingpony in the early stages of Braeburn and Spitfires (non-existent) relationship was a bit too forward.

"What's taking it too far?"

Soarin looked to the side to see Fleetfoot eavesdropping on their conversation. Soarin and Braeburn exchanged glances. Soarin was _not _about to tell Fleetfoot that her crush liked another pony so he just made something up.

"_Braeburn's _taking it too far," he said, making Braeburn twitch in annoyance at having this all pinned on him. Fleetfoot looked at Braeburn.

"What are you taking too far?" she asked him, her eyes wide with interest. Braeburn looked over at Soarin, confused.

"Why don't _you_ tell 'er, Soar?" he suggested, looking smug. Soarin desperately tried to think of something to say. He suddenly got the perfect idea.

"Braeburn was just saying that he…wanted to take his…dog on a walk to…the Crystal Empire, but then he said: 'No…_that's taking it too far_!" he grinned in triumph at coming up with that. Braeburn nodded and agreed.

"So, Ah'm gonna walk him to Neighagra Falls instead," he added. Soarin was a little irritated at that since Neighagra Falls was _still too far_! Actually, come to think of it, Braeburn didn't even _have _a dog. Oops. Fleetfoot glanced up at the clock on the wall and jumped down from her stool.

"I've gotta get going. I bet Rapidfire I could beat him in a 100 lap race and I don't wanna be late," she told the stallions, rubbing her hooves together at the thought of Rapidfire eating her dust. She bid the two friends farewell and headed back over the counter, not losing any feathers in the trays by the way.

"See ya, Fleetfoot," Braeburn waved as she left. Soarin decided he should leave, too. He'd pretty much decided to forget about talking to Braeburn about Rainbow Dash. He had also decided that he was just gonna come out and tell her how he felt. It wasn't exactly rocket science.

"I'm gonna head out, too. Gotta meet Dashie for our training session and tell her I like her," he told Braeburn his plan. Braeburn's jaw dropped.

"Really!? You're gonna tell 'er _now_?" he blinked rapidly. Soarin nodded.

"Yeah, how hard can it be?" he cleared his throat and spoke to a bowl of fruit resting on the counter. "Rainbow Dash, you'll never guess, but I have a crush on you," he looked at Braeburn, smirking. "See, easy as pie," his mouth watered a little as he said 'pie'.

Braeburn rubbed the back of his neck. "Wow, Soarin. Ah know you're just talkin' to a bunch o' fruit, but that's still impressive. Ah wish Ah was as brave as you," he sighed, staring down at the floor. Soarin headed to the door.

"Don't worry, buddy, you'll get there someday," he assured his friend. "I'll see ya later," he then left the kitchen, wearing a determined smile. How hard could this possibly be?

* * *

><p><strong>BOOM!<strong>

Soarin cheered for Rainbow Dash as she pulled off a _triple _Buccaneer Blaze. That was the kind of move that, in a real airshow, would have spectators passing out from the sheer awesomeness of it. Rainbow swooped down and landed triumphantly beside Soarin.

"Meh, it was nothin'…but it was still _SO AWESOME_!" she put her hooves on her cheeks and squeaked out the last two words, making Soarin chuckle. She could be real sweet when she wanted to be. She was in a good mood, so now was the time to tell her.

"So, Dashie, I've gotta say something," Soarin felt his cheeks tingle with warmth. Rainbow squinted at him.

"Soarin, have you been exercising today?" she asked him. Soarin shook his head, wondering why she would ask something like that.

"Nope, why?" he asked her. She pointed a blue hoof at his face.

"Well, you look a little red, that's all," she told him. Soarin shook his head once again.

"Nah, I just have a cr-" Soarin blinked rapidly. His throat had just kinda seized up. That had never happened to him before. _"Speak!"_ he thought to himself, opening his mouth again. Nothing came out!

"You have a crah?" Rainbow Dash tilted her head. What was a 'crah'? Soarin fanned himself before finally finding himself able to speak again.

"No, I meant to say I have a-" he stopped again and growled at himself in frustration. Since when did it become so hard to talk? Soarin didn't know words could get stuck in your throat like that. It was actually pretty terrifying! Rainbow Dash waited while Soarin opened and closed his mouth, with no sounds coming out whatsoever. He tugged at the collar of his officer's uniform as sweat trickled down the side on his head. "Whew, hot day, isn't it?" he grinned the best he could. Rainbow Dash seemed a little befuddled since it was a particularly nippy late March afternoon.

"Er…yes?" Rainbow shrugged, shuddering as she noticed how cold it was.

"Cr-cr-cr-crush!" Soarin felt successful as he got a key word out. Rainbow Dash still didn't get the message.

"What about crushing?" she asked him.

"I have-" Soarin felt his throat freeze and the words got jammed once again. He swore in his head and wanted to slap some sense into himself. But he'd look ridiculous if he socked himself in the face. This was in no way normal. He needed to get out of there. He had been wrong: THIS WAS TOO HARD!

"Ya know, I just remembered I have to…" Soarin got an idea. "Buzz buzz buzz," he made phone noises and dug into his uniform's pocket. He pulled out the first thing he found and held it to his ear. "Hello?" he spoke into a pen. Rainbow took a cautious step away from him. "What's that, _my house is on fire?_ I'd better go. Bye," he 'hung up' his pen and put it back in his pocket. "Sorry about that Dashie; gotta bolt. See ya!" With that Soarin sped off into the sky as fast as he could.

"Er…bye?" Rainbow awkwardly waved after him.

* * *

><p><em>Hi, guys,<em>

_That Assembly I told you about was today. By the way, thanks for those get well gifts. Pinkie Pie, those cupcakes you sent were fantastic! I really want to know who put the horseshoe in the clouds so I can give them a stern talking to, but for all I know it could even be a Wonderbolt!_

_Say, Fluttershy I have to ask you for some advice. There's a pretty shy pony I've met here called Cinder and she's finding it really hard to come out of her shell. Can you tell me how I can get her to act a little braver because I think that she can be a much greater flyer if she stopped focusing on what other ponies think of her._

_I'm really looking forward to coming to the Spring Celebration in April. I've really missed you guys and whenever I get your letters it feels like you're really here. Speaking of you being here, I was wondering if you guys could visit me here. You could meet my cadet friends and I could maybe take you on a cloud ride._

_I'm gonna get some shut-eye now. I wasn't woken up by a bugle this morning because there were no drills, but tomorrow the 'Trumpet from Tartarus' will be back._

_Yours incredibly,_

_Rainbow Dash._

Dash put the letter in her saddlebag and sat on her bed, looking around at the empty room. According to Lullaby she was sleeping on the floor since Spring Song had taken her bed, so Rainbow Dash was waiting for-

"Hey, Dash!"

Rainbow beamed as Lullaby appeared at her door. The purple mare was holding a bag full of her belongings in her teeth and had a pillow balanced on her back.

"Hey, roomie," Rainbow greeted her back. Lullaby tossed her pillow on Spring Song's old bed and began unpacking. "You have no idea how relieved I am to get out of that room. I should have done this weeks ago."

"Here, let me help you," Rainbow got off her bed and began to help Lullaby arrange her stuff. Lullaby smiled over at Rainbow Dash as she spread one of her Wonderbolts poster on the wall beside her bed.

"I think I'm gonna like having you or a roommate," she told Dash. Rainbow returned her smile.

"I'm gonna enjoy having you here, too."


	13. Being Friendly

Rainbow Dash whizzed beside Lullaby as the final minutes of drills ticked by. They were practising creating tornados in pairs and Rainbow was pleased to see that theirs was the biggest. After the incident with Lightning Dust, Rainbow Dash had been practising her tornado control and she had to admit that she'd improved greatly.

"One minute left!"

Rainbow Dash heard a light bulb go off in her head. Her training with Soarin could finally come in handy here. "Hey, Lullaby!" Rainbow Dash called out over the whirring of the twister. Lullaby squinted through her flying goggles.

"What is it?" she called back.

"Would you mind getting out of here?" Rainbow asked her. Lullaby was bewildered.

"How come?" she bellowed. Rainbow Dash smirked.

"You'll see!" she replied. Lullaby hesitated a little before taking a sharp turn and exiting the tornado. Rainbow now had to control the tornado by herself and luckily her practise hadn't been for nothing. Now was the time to show everypony what she could do. She tilted her body down and began descending, flying round in circles faster and faster. She could feel the tornado getting bigger around her as she sped up.

She was going to show everyone the Soar Spin.

She was getting closer to the ground, now. At the last moment she pulled up and-

WHOOSH!

Powerful gusts of wind erupted around her, completely blowing Whiplash off his hooves and sending Fast Clip to the ground. She looked to the side to see the cadets staring at her in awe. She'd literally blown their minds! Dash swerved down to land on the ground right in front of Spitfire, who looked pretty impressed.

"Whoa, Dash. Not exactly what I expected from a tornado drill, but you've just earned a pretty good report today," Spitfire informed Rainbow Dash, who triumphantly flapped into the air and flipped backwards to celebrate. She was tackled to the ground by a few of the cadets.

"Rainbow Dash, that was _amazing_!" Lullaby praised her friend, ruffling her rainbow coloured mane.

"Yeah, I wish I could do that," Stargazer hugged Dash tightly.

"Where did ya learn that?" Bumble asked Rainbow, giving her a slap on the back. Rainbow Dash smiled and shrugged.

"I learned from the best," she replied. Spitfire blew her whistle, getting their attention back.

"Enough of the jibba jabba! Tomorrow you'll be taking a break from flying techniques and weather control to practice mid-air combat. Most ponies forget that the Wonderbolts are warriors, not just stunt flyers," Spitfire revealed. The cadets immediately began buzzing with excitement, except Cinder, who turned a little pale at the mention of fighting.

With that the cadets were dismissed and they headed to the Mess Hall. Lullaby trotted beside Rainbow Dash.

"Hey, Dash, do ya think you can teach us that awesome trick?" the purple pegasus asked Rainbow and seconds after she said that Rainbow was being swarmed by nearly all the cadets, staring at her with big pleading eyes. Rainbow gazed around at all the begging pegasi and felt a little pleased that they were all asking her for help with a trick. Was this how Soarin felt when he taught her?

"Meh, why not?" Rainbow Dash replied coolly, though inside she was repeating _ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh_! "But can I get a bite to eat first? I think we all need a snack after that tornado exercise."

After they all agreed to eat first, they walked through the double doors to the Mess Hall.

* * *

><p>"Idiot, idiot, idiot!"<p>

Braeburn cursed under his breath as Soarin repeated that word over and over again while slamming his head into the table. The two of them were alone in the staffroom, and Braeburn was seriously debating whether or not he should leave. Soarin was acting like a complete nutcase because of the whole Rainbow Dash fiasco from yesterday and it was beginning to drive Braeburn up a wall.

"Will ya stop that already?" the earth pony hissed at his friend. Soarin finally stopped bonking himself on the table after that and Braeburn sighed with relief. Braeburn and Soarin were at the coffee machine at the back of the room. "You're meant to be givin' me instructions, not sockin' yerself senseless!"

"Heh…sorry," Soarin apologized, rubbing his sore looking forehead. Braeburn rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the coffee machine and the polystyrene cup in front of him. "Why are you making me do this again?"

"Well, yesterday in the kitchen, your determination to confess your feelin's t' Rainbow Dash got me thinkin' 'bout mah situation with Miss Spitfire," Braeburn revealed. Soarin gasped.

"Are you gonna tell her?" he asked Braeburn. Braeburn did a double take.

"No way, Ah'm not that brave!" the Appaloosan said, feeling instantly nervous at the thought. Soarin exhaled and patted Braeburn on the back.

"Good for you, buddy, 'cause it's _impossible_!" Soarin sighed, his eyes glazing over. Braeburn slapped Soarin round the face for fear of the pegasus stallion doing it himself.

"Snap outta it!" Braeburn scolded his high school friend. Soarin sheepishly gave Braeburn a weak smile.

"Sorry… I needed that. But aren't you gonna tell me why we're making her coffee?" the Wonderbolt repeated his question from earlier.

"Well, remember when Ah first told ya 'bout all this? Ya told me t' just take baby steps and be nice to 'er, right?" Braeburn tried to jolt Soarin's memory. Soarin just stared at Braeburn for a few seconds before replying.

"Yes, but what does that have to do with coffee?" he asked. Braeburn sighed and muttered something negative under his breath.

"Well, instead o' doin' somethin' lame like givin' her flowers or a goat-"

"A goat?" Soarin raised an eyebrow. Braeburn reached up and took his cowboy hat off his head, reaching under it and pulling out a book titled _'100 things to know about crushes that you were afraid to ask'._ Soarin was about to ask him what else he kept under his hat when he flipped open the book to a specific page and read a few sentences.

"Oh, it said 'boat'…but how does a boat help- ugh, stupid book, FORGET THE BOOK!" Braeburn shoved it back under his hat roughly. "Anyway, Ah figured that getting' 'er coffee is as good a start as any," Braeburn shrugged, once he'd forgotten about his rage with the book and returned to his normal smiley mood.

"Oh, yeah, that is a good idea. Better than getting her a goat, anyway," Soarin joked. "Well, now that I know why we're doing this, she likes half a spoonful of sugar," he told Braeburn, who obediently spooned the right amount of sugar into the full cup.

"How much milk?" the earth pony asked Soarin.

"No milk; she likes it black," the pegasus replied. "That's it."

Braeburn nodded his thanks to Soarin and let his eyes slip sideways until they landed on the cookie jar. He suddenly felt pretty hungry. "Hey, Soarin. D'ya want a cookie?"

"Yeah, sure," Soarin licked his lips as Braeburn opened up the jar and tossed him a chocolate chip cookie, which was gone in seconds. Braeburn munched on his slower than Soarin did, just waiting. His time in the staffroom had taught him a lot of things about the pegasi here, mainly what times they liked to come here. He knew that Fleetfoot was always here during both sets of drills, Rapidfire came in here during the second half of drills for a nap and Spitfire always came in after drills to grab some coffee and then headed to her office, so she could come in at any moment.

"What's taking so long? I wanna see what happens," Soarin complained, flopping down on the couch. Braeburn fixed him with a stern glower.

"Nothin' will happen," he insisted. He was just trying to make friends with her at this point. Soarin looked like he was about to say something else but quickly changed his mind. Braeburn got the suspicion that the co-captain was about to say something that wouldn't help with this situation. At least the pie loving stallion could hold his tongue about certain things.

"Hey, Soarin," Braeburn recognized the voice and almost completely shut down. He managed to look to the side as the captain he had been waiting for came through the door. She looked over at him with that usual stern expression of hers. "Hey, cowboy," she added. Braeburn felt his cheeks threaten to turn red. He liked it when she called him 'cowboy'.

"Hi, Spitfire, what's up?" Soarin smiled at her. Spitfire shrugged.

"Usually us," she joked and Soarin chuckled.

"Yeah, because we're Wonderbolts and it's our job to be up-"

"Soarin, if ya have to explain the joke it's not funny," Spitfire told him. Soarin ceased laughing, though he was still smirking.

"So, why are you here?" Soarin asked her, looking over at Braeburn, who finally began functioning properly again. Spitfire gave Soarin a weird look.

"Soarin, you know I come in here to get coffee every day at the same time," she reminded him. Soarin faked a look of realization.

"Oh, now I remember," he lied. "Well, you don't have to worry about the coffee because…" he looked over at Braeburn, waiting for him to finish the sentence. Braeburn opened his mouth. Why in Celestia's name was his throat so dry? "_Because…_" Soarin repeated more harshly. Braeburn gave in to that stupid freezing sensation and Soarin face-hoofed. "Braeburn already made you some!" Soarin finished the sentence. Braeburn finally spoke.

"Yeah… Ah did. It's next to the Espresso machine," he told Spitfire who flashed him a smile before trotting over to the machine.

"Thanks cowboy," she said to him and Braeburn turned around to stare at the wall so she wouldn't be able to see his blush. Once he was sure he didn't look red, he turned back round to see Spitfire about to leave the room.

"See ya," Soarin called after her.

"Yeah, bye, ma'am," Braeburn waved at her even though she couldn't see him. Spitfire turned and nodded in farewell at the two of them. She turned to leave again but stopped in the doorway, pausing for a few seconds before looking over her shoulder.

"Hey," she looked over at Braeburn. Braeburn's pupils dilated as she looked at him and he did that stupid Look-Behind-You-To-See-If-She's-Talking-To-Somepony-Else-Even-Though-You-Know-That-The-Only-Thing-Behind-You-Is-A-Wall thing. Once he'd confirmed that there was nothing but a wall behind him and she _wouldn't _talk to a wall he looked back at her.

"Yes, ma'am," he asked her, smiling as usual. Spitfire gestured to the hallway.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" she asked him. Braeburn felt something like a firework go off in his brain and he suddenly forgot how to walk. He slowly put one hoof in front of the other, looking at Soarin as if to say 'come with me'. Soarin just gave Braeburn an eyebrow wiggle, which gave Braeburn the desire to punch him.

He finally made it to the hallway and Spitfire closed the door behind them. She then began walking down the hallway and motioned for Braeburn to follow her. It then dawned on Braeburn that he was alone with Spitfire in a hallway. He felt completely stunned, trying to remember how to walk, breathe and speak and he felt a little lightheaded. He suddenly found himself leaning against the left wall of the hallway and Braeburn suspected that he'd almost fainted and the wall had been the only thing keeping him from falling to the floor.

Spitfire only led him a few metres away, as if she wanted to make sure they were out of earshot. She held out her hoof to get him to stop before turning to face him. Braeburn suddenly found the floor interesting and began running a hoof along the wooden surface.

"So…what is it, ma'am?" Braeburn looked over at the golden mare. She took off her shades and folded them up before tucking them in the front pocket of her uniform. Braeburn finally got to see her eyes without her sunglasses on and was briefly dazzled by them. They were very…orange and they seemed to sparkle. Braeburn wondered if she was staring into his soul, and looked down to check before realising that was _ridiculous_!

"Listen, cowboy, I'm not stupid. So what is it?" Spitfire asked him. Braeburn was instantly baffled by the question. What was she talking about?

"Pardon? Ah don't really understand what ya mean?" he looked down at her. She looked a little angry.

"What do you want from me?" she asked him again. She didn't give him a chance to reply (not that he could have) because she hadn't finished talking. "You repair things for me, agree to a job assisting me, teach me how to bake pie and get me my stuff and you seriously don't think I'll get a little suspicious? So, what did you put in my coffee? Drugs? Poison!?"

Braeburn's jaw dropped. Why in the name of the princesses would he do something like that? He couldn't understand how somepony could mistake a kind gesture for the exact opposite. "Ma'am…Ah wouldn't do somethin' like that. Ah was just tryin' t' be friendly," he replied gently, despite the look of panic in his green eyes.

"Why?" Spitfire asked, surprisingly calmly. Braeburn took a second to calm himself down before replying, meeting her gaze.

"Well, back in Appaloosa we treat ladies with the greatest possible respect. Ah was just being polite," Braeburn replied, straightening up and speaking confidently. Spitfire looked away from him and down at the ground.

"Well, I'm not a lady," she sighed sombrely. Braeburn was once again shocked at this. How could a mare possibly say that? He smiled down at her warmly.

"Well, that's not true…" Braeburn paused before saying the next half of his sentence. "Actually…you're the finest lady Ah've met," he turned a little pink. Spitfire's angry glare vanished and was replaced with one of shock. She looked up and met his gaze, looking confused, surprised and mystified all at the same time. For several seconds they just stared at each other, not saying a word before Spitfire suddenly began babbling random syllables. She turned away from Braeburn and grumbled, though she didn't turn far enough to hide her right cheek and Braeburn was surprised, and pleased, to see a light blush on her face.

"Well, you can just stop…"she spat, looking back at him for a split second before turning away again. "…it's better if I'm just…left alone."

Braeburn frowned down at her and he felt his spirits sink down to his hooves. All he'd tried to do was become her friend, but now she was mad at him! "Ma'am…" he stopped talking even though he wanted to say every possible thing that would make her change her mind. Maybe…maybe he should just give up. "Ah didn't mean t' make ya angry. I just…" he made up his mind. He'd rather give up now than be shot down later. He wanted what was best for her, and if that meant that he had to leave her be then…he'd do just that. "Ah'm sorry…" he turned and began heading back to the staffroom, head hung low and his chest feeling hollow.

"Hold up,"

Braeburn's ears pricked up as Spitfire spoke, so quiet he barely heard her. He turned to look at her. She was sitting on her haunches, staring down at the floor, looking a little guilty.

"I…I didn't mean that…" she apologized, scuffing her front hooves on the floor. "I'm sorry…" she spoke even quieter, as if she wasn't used to saying that word: 'sorry'. Braeburn felt his mood brighten immediately. Maybe all was not lost. He smiled softly at her and felt that familiar warm tingling he got when he was around her.

"Apology accepted, ma'am," Braeburn said gently. Spitfire looked up at him again. She looked different without her scowl and Braeburn meant that in a very good way. Without a grimace she seemed even more beautiful. She smiled gratefully at him and that just made Braeburn smile wider. She got up and turned around, most likely heading to her office. As she walked she turned and looked over her shoulder.

"See ya later, cowboy," she nodded at him, still wearing a small smile. Braeburn tipped his hat to her.

"Yeah…" he felt giddy. "See ya."

* * *

><p>Lean a little to the left, Stains!" Rainbow Dash called up to the green-blue mare. Stains wasn't doing very well…at all. Her Soar Spin reminded Rainbow Dash of her pet tortoise Tank chasing his tail: It just wasn't gonna work out!<p>

"OH NO!" Stains panicked as she completely lost control and was flung to the side. Rainbow Dash took off to catch her but suddenly caught sight of something. Beau was flying at incredible speed, moving clouds around. What the hay was she doing? Within seconds Beau had fashioned a massive throw pillow out of clouds. Stains crashed into it and clung on to it for dear life. Rainbow looked over at Beau, who was looking at her work proudly whilst helping Stains stand up. Rainbow Dash whizzed over to Beau and slapped her on the back.

"This is awesome, Beau. Where did you learn to do that?" she asked the dark pink mare. Beau just shrugged.

"It's a natural gift," she replied, sitting down on the cloud/pillow. "I'm just pretty talented when it comes to clouds."

"Well, you may not be able to pull off a Soar Spin but you sure can sculpt," Rainbow commented, jumping up and down on Beau's work. Stains raised a hoof.

"Hey, remember me? The pony who just face planted into a cloud?" she asked, still looking a little dizzy. Rainbow Dash chuckled sheepishly and walked over to check on her friend.

"You didn't hurt yourself too bad there, did you?" she asked Stains, who shook her head.

"Nah, I'm sure I'll be fine once I stop seeing triple," she replied, though Dash wasn't sure whether she was joking or not. Rainbow looked down at the other cadets, minus Spring Song and Paradise. Those two were somewhere else, Spring Song probably using Paradise as a hoof stool, while everypony else was out here, attempting Soar Spins. So far the only cadets who could do one were Rainbow Dash and Tempest. Tempest was still bragging about it by the time Rainbow Dash, Beau and Stains returned to the cloudy ground.

"Yeah, it was no sweat," he boasted. "I just flew down and turned- simple."

Rainbow Dash was about to tell him that it wasn't that easy, but she'd learned that with Tempest things just went in one ear and out the other.

"I wish I could do a Soar Spin," Smart Set groaned. Sugar Swoop put a hoof on the beige stallion.

"Well, Tempest has always been better than the rest of us colts," he sneered. Tempest heard that and flapped into the air.

"Too true," he smirked. "I can even do a Sonic Rainboom."

Rainbow rolled her eyes, knowing that he was just lying. She remembered Spring Song telling her on the first day of drills that he claimed he could pull a Rainboom off, but Bumble and Beau denied it. But Rainbow Dash wasn't gonna pass the opportunity to see another pegasus try. She smiled mischievously up at the orange stallion. "Is that so?"

"It _is _so!" Tempest replied, looking smug. Rainbow narrowed her magenta eyes.

"Prove it!" she demanded. Tempest got a competitive look on his face and grinned. He began ascending higher into the air, his shaggy green mane being swept back as he sped up.

"Sure thing!" he called down. Once he'd flown so high that the other cadets could barely see him, Rainbow Dash settled down on the ground waiting to see his epic fail. Lullaby sat beside Rainbow Dash.

"Do ya think he can really do it?" she asked, looking up at the orange dot in the sky. Rainbow snorted with laughter.

"No way, everypony knows that I'm the only pony who can do a Sonic Rainboom. It _is _my special talent after all," Rainbow Dash looked proudly at her cutie mark. "The whole point of a _special _talent is that nopony else can do it but you. Just like you…uh…Lullaby? What _is _your special talent?" Rainbow asked her purple friend. She had just realised that she had no idea what the other cadets' talents were. Lullaby looked down at her cutie mark: a nightcap with five musical notes around it.

"Singing foals to sleep," she replied. "I've had plenty of practice with two little sisters and a little brother."

"Oh, so what made you want to be a Wonderbolt?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously. Why didn't she just take a job at a day-care or a school since she was so good with foals?

"Well, I'm sure you've noticed by now but I'm not all that good at the stunt flying part of all this," Lullaby began. "But I'm a pretty good fighter. I first found my knack for it when I found a mare being abusive to a group of little fillies. So my instincts kicked in and the next thing you know I bucked her right in the chest. I wasn't all that pleased with myself that I kicked somepony, but when I saw how happy those foals were, how they all tackled me to the ground and hugged me until my lungs almost collapsed I saw how great it was to protect others. When I discovered that the Wonderbolts were soldiers as well as stunt flyers I decided that one day I'd join them and protect the whole of Equestria," Lullaby finished her story. Rainbow looked down at her proudly. She was really committed to helping other ponies, and Rainbow Dash liked meeting ponies like that.

"That's so cool, Lullaby. I guess you can show me how well you fight at drills tomorrow," the blue mare, nudged her roommate. She couldn't wait to show off her fighting skills, too. She just hoped that she wouldn't be paired up with Lullaby, because judging by her story she was a real good kicker.

"Here I come!" Tempest yelled from above. Rainbow craned her neck and squinted against the sunlight as the orange stallion began zooming downwards. He got faster and faster as the moments went by and Rainbow Dash could faintly see the air pressure surrounding him. He was getting faster still. Rainbow Dash wondered for a second if he was telling the truth. Could he really do a Sonic Rainboom? He was almost there. The pressure was getting tighter…and…

"WHOOOOOOOOOA!"

Rainbow Dash collapsed in laughter as Tempest was flung into the air, sailing right over the Academy to who-knows-where. She knew it: she was still the only pony who could do a Sonic Rainboom. Bumble and Beau took off into the air.

"We'd better go and find him," Bumble called back to the other cadets as they flew off to find their friend. Rainbow picked herself up off the ground and snickered. Lullaby was still beside her, also giggling.

"So, do you wanna head back to our room?" she suggested. It felt odd having a roommate again, but a good kind of odd. Rainbow nodded.

"Sure, I've got a letter to write anyway."

* * *

><p><em>What's up, guys?<em>

_I finally got to show the other cadets one of the tricks Soarin taught me. They totally loved it! Speaking of Soarin, I haven't seen him today. He was supposed to teach me how to do a Raincloud Double Backflip upside down, but he was nowhere to be found! I swear he hadn't taken a day off._

_Oh well, I'll talk to him about it tomorrow, which is also when I'll be practising mid-air combat. It's about time we get to the battling 'cause I can't wait to show the others some of the moves I used when we fought the changelings back in Canterlot. It'll be __**so awesome**_**!**

_Oh yeah, I have a new roommate. Her name is Lullaby and she's a _much _better roomie than Spring Song was. Speaking of Spring Song, the she-devil kicked Lullaby out of her own bed! What kind of moron does that? I bet even morons look at her and say 'Whoa, she's a moron!'_

_But enough of that! I'm really excited for the Spring Celebration. I found out that us cadets have a day off to go to our separate festivities. I'm gonna ask Soarin if he wants to come and I bet that Braeburn's coming, too. There's somepony else I want to come, too, but she's a pretty busy pony, so I wouldn't count on it._

_I'll see you in a few days' time,_

_Rainbow Dash._

"So you write them letters every day?" Lullaby asked Rainbow from her spot, tucked under the covers in the bed opposite Dash's.

"Yeah, we're really close and I really hate being away from them," Rainbow replied, thinking of all the good times she'd had with her friends.

"But it's all worth it, right?" Lullaby smiled over at Rainbow, propping herself up on her pillow. Rainbow nodded in agreement.

"It is. We'll become Wonderbolts and then my friends can come with me on all my tours!" Rainbow's eyes glimmered at the very thought of flying with her lifelong heroes, along with Lullaby.

"I wish I could come to the Spring Celebration with you Rainbow Dash," Lullaby told Dash, brushing the fringe of her orange and blue mane out of her eyes. "You're friends sound really cool."

Rainbow Dash smiled at this. She really wanted Lullaby to meet her friends, too. But hearing somepony say that they thought her friends were cool warmed her heart. She nodded and grinned, lying back in her bed.

"Yeah. They're the best."

* * *

><p><strong>Endnote: Man, it feels good to write that chapter. The idea for Lullaby's backstory has been bouncing around in my head for weeks and I had to write it down. I wanted to explore the cadets' different reasons for joining the Academy, so I can rest easier knowing that one has been taken care of.<strong>

**Ya know, it's just occurred to me that I have absolutely no idea whether people actually read these authors notes. I could be typing away to myself. Oh well, I'll just forget about that because I'm in a really good mood. My favourite TV series finished today, I'm back at home where I have all the electronics I could possibly need…**

…**and I'm hugging the Spitfire plushie I got for Christmas! *hugs plushie*!**

**Tune in next time in chapter 14 where the cadets have their first combat lesson! This is gonna be fun!**


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